For a country that boasts of more than a hundred languages (and several dialects!), localisation is of utmost significance. In its event, Google India put a spotlight on focussing on the languages of the country. Titled 'L10n' which translates to localisation, spoke about the smaller optimisation that Google India will be rolling out for its various products.
The event spoke about MuRIL, viz Multilingual Representation for Indian Languages, that helps develop machine language models. These will not just aid Search or Google Assistant, but will also support other Google tools with an array of Indian languages.
Another crucial sector that the event touched upon was Google Maps, which earlier had a basic, Hindi narration feature, but now has operations in nine different Indian languages.
In its event, Google India also shed light on improvements in its voice and image search sector. So, Google will now have little to no trouble recognising or identifying your image, text and speech. In fact, it will now suggest native and bilingual search results for your local language inquiries. Here are some highlights of the events:
1) Google Maps available in nine new languages
The tech giant announced a new utility feature where Google Maps can switch to one of the nine new languages with ease. With its growing popularity amongst Ola and Uber drivers, Google India has now made it easier for the public to toggle between languages. You can find the same in 'Settings -> App Language'. After doing the same, you can choose from Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil amongst others.
2) Search in your local language
Wouldn't it be helpful if we could search in our mother-tongue? Simplifying what is otherwise difficult in a second language, Google can now deliver search results in the language of your preference. The supported languages are Tamil, Telugu, Bangla, and Marathi. If that's not all, Google will also provide search results for you in your primary language -- even when you search in English. This feature is essential for bilingual netizens who have to grapple with their second language.
3) Using Google Lens Homework search in Hindi
Perhaps this is a change that would've been the highlight of our childhood! The 'homework' feature on Google Lens can be used to scan complicated math problems -- and translate them to Hindi. This feature was brought in for students studying from home during the pandemic, and have to rely on Google to get them through.
4) MuRIL
Developed to be an open-sourced model that understands Indian languages better, MuRIL (or Multilingual Representations for Indian Languages) can support 16 Indian languages including English. It is a crucial stepping stone for learners, researchers, and developers who are studying local language tools in India.
