The Vatican introduces the translation of the mass into 60 languages with AI: the project debuts for the 400th anniversary of St. Peter’s Basilica
Artificial intelligence has also arrived in the Vatican, and much sooner than anyone could have imagined. The Cardinal Mauro Gambettiarchpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica and vicar general for the Vatican City, thus announced the news of this revolution, illustrating its spiritual leitmotif: «We want to serve the mission that defines the heart of the Catholic Church, universal by its very vocation».
When will it be available in the Vatican
But let’s explain more precisely what it is. In essence, the Vatican will offer a translation of the live broadcast in as many as 60 languages, thanks to the assistance of AI. A service that will allow the faithful to follow the celebrations in a technological but simple way at the same time. Of course, it will be available to everyone: all you need is your smartphone.
The dance will open on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the dedication of St. Peter’s Basilica (which will culminate on November 18th). Cardinal Gambetti recalled in a note that “St. Peter’s Basilica has welcomed faithful of every nation and language for centuries”.
How the translation will work
Going into more specifics, AI translation will be available via a QR codewhich the faithful will be able to scan at the entrances to the Vatican. Translations, audio and text will be visible in real time on the browser, without the need to download any additional applications.
And what type of artificial intelligence is best suited to carry out this task? Well, the translation system will use Lara, developed by language solutions company Translated with the collaboration of Carnegie-AI LLC and Professor Alexander Waibela pioneer in AI-based speech translation. Obviously, every translation could involve errors but, as the CEO and co-founder of Translated explains, «Lara has made a significant step forward in reducing them. It was designed with accuracy over pandering. This greatly limits hallucinations. Lara also uses much more context than previous technologies, which allows it to disambiguate meaning much more effectively.”
Leo XIV and technology
The scientific advisor of the project, Alexader Waibel, is confident that this technology represents the demonstration of the extraordinary potential of AI as a tool that facilitates understanding between human beings: «Today we see the possibility of overcoming language barriers in real timecreated in one of the most significant contexts imaginable.”
The position of Pope Leo XIV remains to be understood in the face of such a profound change, such a driven technological direction. Also because, if on the one hand the Vatican seems to be open to AI, on the other the Pontiff has always warned about the potential dangers of the technology. And who knows, perhaps the use of Lara to translate the Vatican mass could be the subject of the famous “Rerum Digitalium” that is so talked about.
