Google Adds AI Pronunciation Practice to Translate App

Google launched a new AI-powered pronunciation practice feature in its Translate app on Monday to celebrate the service's 20th anniversary since its debut on April 28, 2006. The tool, available initially to Android users in the United States and India for English, Spanish, and Hindi, analyzes users' spoken attempts at translated text and provides instant feedback to improve accuracy.

After obtaining a translation, users can tap a "Practice" or "Pronounce" button to hear a native-like recitation, then record their own pronunciation. Google's AI evaluates the speech in real time, highlighting specific problem areas, such as incorrect sounds in words like the Spanish "jugo" for juice. It displays phonetic guides, like "HUgo" to correct an English-style "j" sound, along with a score indicating overall clarity. Users can retry until achieving feedback such as "Excellent! Your speech was very clear." The feature joins recently added Gemini-powered tools like Understand and Ask, enhancing Translate's role beyond text conversion.

Google described pronunciation practice as one of the app's most requested features, noting that about a third of mobile users already employ it for speaking...