Samsung is one of many tech corporations investing billions in the global artificial intelligence gold rush, which has resulted in software that can create lifelike images and movies and chatbots that mimic human speech thus far.
The company, which makes the majority of smartphones worldwide, claims that its upcoming Galaxy flagship model, scheduled for release in early 2019, will include the new real-time translating feature.
A firm representative told AFP that it will allow for "real-time translation in audio and text as the callers are on the line," however the number of languages that will be supported is still unknown.
Because the new model will use "on-device AI technology," the translation will be enabled even if a call partner uses a smartphone that isn't made by Samsung.
With private chats securely locked in on the phones, speaking to someone in a foreign language using the function will be "as simple as turning on closed captions" on streaming shows, according to a press release from Samsung.
If Samsung's AI could provide real-time phone call translation, analysts said that would be a "significant achievement" and a sign of true technological advancement, though they had doubts about how it would operate.
According to Lee Won-kang, the head of AI-based translation firm XL8's South Korea division, "the whole process will take at least three to four seconds during which the AI will understand an original content, translate into a foreign language, and then verbalise it to a listener."
"To determine how good it is, we will need to see and use it ourselves. This includes determining whether the translated content will be spoken in the original voice or by artificial intelligence."
- AI sprawl - The announcement coincides with the South Korean business's sprint to develop Samsung Gauss, a generative AI model that is presently being utilized by company personnel and comes in three languages: code, picture, and language.
The company stated that it will soon integrate the AI system into its extensive line of products, however it did not provide a specific date or list of models.
Samsung claims that its code AI would enable developers to "code easily and quickly," while its language AI will assist with everything from email composition to document summarization.
According to the statement, Samsung's AI for photos will be able to create and edit images in addition to transforming low-resolution photos to high-resolution ones.
The president of Samsung's smartphone R&D division, Choi Won-joon, stated in a statement that embedded generative AI "will change how we think about our phones forever."
While AI companies have celebrated the technology's ability to enable significant advancements in public services, science, and medicine, governments and watchdogs have voiced concerns around misinformation and data privacy.
The US President Joe Biden last month signed an executive order governing artificial intelligence (AI), which is the most recent in a line of actions taken by the government to limit the technology's possible risks.
In a statement released on Thursday, Samsung stated that "private conversations never leave your phone" and that GalaxyAI will operate on its products.