You don’t have to worry yet about AI if you’re a linguist, especially an Arabic linguist. But before I tell you why, let me take you a few years back.

There was a point when Google, for one, aimed to improve machine translation from a mere automatic dictionary that translated word for word, to adopt neural machine translation (NMT) that learned from human references, context, and language usage. The result was remarkable.

That’s when linguists, especially abroad, started to familiarize themselves with the guidelines of machine translation post-editing (MTPE) and supportive CAT tools such as AWS, SDL, and Memsource (rebranded to Phrase).

Back then, I could see translators on social media groups voicing their frustration towards the industry shift that substituted their talents for the output of a machine.

Personally, early enough, I hopped on the new bandwagon and got myself educated on MTPE, along with a couple more skills and apps. I even started to put together a little guide on how to start working as a machine translation post-editor for beginners. I will be sharing it soon.

Now, if you are an experienced Arabic linguist, here’s how to evade the effect of artificial intelligence as it takes over the translation and content industry:

- Unless you are a legal translator who handles government contracts and mega deals, you can put human translation aside and look for jobs where localization is key. Localization is culture, and this can't be processed by a machine.
- Learn how to use subtitling, interpretation, MTPE, and transcription tools because mastering the tool is your ticket to most linguistic jobs now.
- It would be very smart to market your tech skills more than the art of translation, going forward. I am sorry, we must figure out how to maintain a piece of the cake. The ever-evolving cake. See, survival mode!
- Add audio and video to your specialties.

Let me tell you why you can still be a linguist in the time of ChatGPT.
- AI does not understand difficult Arabic dialects, yet. It’s programmed for MSA only. Your ability to understand Iraqi or Moroccan, for example, is golden.
- AI would never understand what a toothless 70-year-old Bedouin is saying, but you can. If Siri still mishears me although my teeth are intact, then we’re good.
- Focus on localization. Cultural adaptation cannot be done by even the most advanced NMT engine.
- Aim for the industries that cannot afford to replace the human mind with a machine. Yes, good guess! Politics, security, legal, and the entertainment industries, are good examples.
- You can actually find jobs as a linguistic QA and QC for AI powered text to voice generators and similar tools. Ironic?

I have to say, it all starts and ends with your mindset. Be resilient. Yes, change is rapid these days. We need to change with change, not fight it.