As global demand for non-English content surges, IMAX is embracing AI technology to scale localization efforts and enhance the global reach of its original content. The move comes in response to a rapidly changing entertainment landscape where non-English language content is seeing unprecedented growth, even in traditionally English-speaking markets such as the U.S., U.K., and Canada.

In 2023, the entertainment industry saw a 5% growth, reaching a total of $2.8 trillion. Projections suggest a continued expansion, with the industry expected to hit $3.4 trillion by 2028. IMAX, known for its larger-than-life theaters and immersive experiences, is keen to tap into this global demand for diverse content, especially as streaming platforms like Netflix report significant viewership growth in non-English titles.

On Monday, IMAX announced a partnership with Dubai-based startup Camb.ai to integrate AI-driven speech translation into its content localization process. Camb.ai has already gained attention for its AI dubbing and translation work in live sports events, including the Australian Open and Eurovision Sport. Their Boli model will help IMAX translate original documentaries and other content into multiple languages, using its advanced speech-to-text and speech-emulation technology.

Camb.ai co-founder Akshat Prakash explained that their AI models are highly specialized, with a focus on efficient translation for specific tasks. “Our models are less than 100 million parameters and are fine-tuned for particular needs,” said Prakash. This allows Camb.ai to avoid scraping vast amounts of data from the internet, ensuring the models are trained with commercially usable academic datasets.

IMAX’s AI translation project will be rolled out in phases, starting with high-resource languages. The company has already conducted successful internal testing on its original content. Mark Welton, IMAX Global’s president, noted that the deployment of AI could help reduce translation costs, though he did not disclose specific savings.

This collaboration marks the beginning of an exciting new era for IMAX, where AI will play a key role in enhancing the accessibility of its content to a worldwide audience.

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