# Chat Translate and language detection

Detect visitor language and translate conversation text, AI suggestions and supported transcripts.

*Release 3.3 · admin, operator, visitor*

**Settings › AI › Features** · **Settings › Account › Operators** · **Settings › AI › Additional Languages**

## What it is

**Chat Translate** translates conversation text for operators and visitors. **Detect Language** identifies a visitor's language for supported AI behaviour. Translation can also help operators review Copilot suggestions, summaries and historical transcripts.

## Who uses it and why

Operators use translated messages to work with visitors who speak another language. Visitors can receive replies in their language. Administrators choose the AI features, language options and operator access.

## Where to find it

Configure **Chat Translate** and **Detect Language** under **Settings › AI › Features** with the **Settings** role and **AI** permission, or the **Developer** role.

Maintain operators' **Spoken Language(s)** under **Settings › Account › Operators** with the **Settings** or **Manager** role. Conversation language controls and translated results appear beside messages. Optional transcript translation is available in **History**, visitor history and ended chats.

## How it works

INSIDE selects the appropriate enabled language feature for the visitor. Language detection can update the visitor's detected language. Translation then considers the visitor's language, the operator's primary and spoken languages, and the configured translation options.

Original and translated text are kept separately. A message already suitable for its recipient may not need translation. A translation failure is different from a result that needs no translation.

**Detect language on every message** allows detection to follow a visitor who changes language. **Always Translate Visitor messages to the Operator's Primary Language** requests translation even when the detected language is among that operator's spoken languages.

Copilot can provide translated suggestions for review. Summary translation and Autopilot transcript translation use their respective configurations. On-demand transcript translation is a separate option and must be enabled explicitly.

## Configure it

1. Ask Powerfront to enable AI and prepare suitable accounts.
2. Create an enabled **Chat Translate** feature, select its **Account** and set visitor filters and priority.
3. Choose **Detect Language Provider** and, where appropriate, **Account to Detect Language**.
4. Set **Translate Instructions**, language detection frequency and translation options. Supported configurations can use **Translate with History** and **Setup Translation Examples** for additional guidance.
5. With the **Settings** or **Manager** role and the required operator permissions, grant operators **Allow AI Translations** under **Chat Permissions** and check their **Spoken Language(s)**.

Enable **Allow On-Demand Transcript Translation** if operators should translate saved transcripts. Use **Settings › AI › Additional Languages** for additional AI language configuration with the **Settings** role and **AI** permission, or the **Developer** role. Ask Powerfront to change the website's supported language catalogue or fallbacks.

### Settings

| Setting | Where | Applies to | Default | Who can change it | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Translate with History | Settings › AI › Features | website | Off | Settings role, Developer role | Adds recent conversation context in supported translation configurations. |
| Allow On-Demand Transcript Translation | Settings › AI › Features | website | Off | Settings role, Developer role | Allows manual transcript translation from History, visitor history and ended chats. |
| Detect language on every message | Settings › AI › Features | website | Off | Settings role, Developer role | Requests fresh visitor language detection for each eligible message. |
| Always Translate Visitor messages to the Operator's Primary Language | Settings › AI › Features | website | Off | Settings role, Developer role | Requests visitor-message translation into the operator's primary language even when the visitor language is among the operator's spoken languages. |
| Translate Instructions | Settings › AI › Features | website | Not set; uses service guidance | Settings role, Developer role | Supplies custom translation guidance for supported execution. |
| Detect Language Provider | Settings › AI › Features | website | AI Account (Default) | Settings role, Developer role | Chooses account-based language detection or Lingua.Net. |
| Account to Detect Language | Settings › AI › Features | website | Not set: uses the feature's account for language detection | Settings role, Developer role | Selects an AI account for account-based language detection. |

### Permissions

| Permission | Lets you |
|---|---|
| Allow AI Translations | Allows operators with the Chat role to use AI translation assistance. |
| Settings | Manage translation features with the AI permission and maintain operator languages. |
| AI | Allows AI configuration under Settings Permissions. |
| Developer | Configure Chat Translate and Detect Language features. |
| Manager | Maintain operator accounts and their spoken languages, subject to editing restrictions. |

## Limits and good to know

- The operator's language settings influence whether translation is needed and its target language.
- Already translated or unsuitable content can be skipped.
- Regional language variants must be supported; unsupported variants can fall back to a broader language.
- Translation history and examples depend on the configured execution. Do not assume every account uses the same context.
- AI translation and the language of the visitor chat's buttons or interface text are separate configurations.

## Depends on and works with

### This feature uses

- **Requires** [AI accounts and shared defaults](AIP-001.md): AI translation uses a suitable configured account.
- **Configured in** [Roles and permissions](ADM-008.md): Operator permissions control use and administration.
- **Configured in** [Operator settings](ADM-010.md): Operator spoken languages and primary language affect translation.
- **Configured in** [Supported languages](ADM-022.md): Supported languages and fallbacks affect valid language choices.
- **Configured in** [AI feature settings and change history](AI-001.md): Language features use configured accounts, visitor filters and priority.
- **Configured in** [AI instructions and templates](AI-002.md): Supported translation and detection instruction sections can use prompt sources.
- **Configured in** [Conversation translation](CHAT-023.md): Conversation language controls let operators change the visitor language used for translation.
- **Works better with** [Conversation history and search](CHAT-024.md): On-demand translation can make historical transcripts readable in another language.
- **Needs licence or module** Admin settings and feature switches (managed by Powerfront): AI must be enabled for the website.

### Used by

- **Enhances** [Autopilot for live chat](AI-003.md): An enabled Chat Translate feature can prepare Autopilot transcripts for History.
- **Enhances** [Copilot reply suggestions](AI-006.md): Translation can make a suggestion available in the operator's language.
- **Enhances** [AI conversation summaries](AI-009.md): Translation can prepare a summary in the operator's language.
- **Enhances** [Personal information masking for AI](AIP-021.md): Supported language and translation operations can use privacy processing with operation-specific exclusions.
- **Enhances** [AI assistance, translation and sentiment reports](REP-026.md): Translation activity supplies the language and message counts.
- **Related** [Conversation translation](CHAT-023.md): The AI translation guide explains language detection and translation assistance.

## FAQ and troubleshooting

### Why are some visitor messages not translated?

The language may already be suitable for the operator, the content may be unsuitable, or no feature may match. Check **Spoken Language(s)** and the primary-language translation option.

### Why did the detected language stay the same after the visitor switched languages?

Check **Detect language on every message**. Short or ambiguous text can also be difficult to identify.

### Why can I not translate a historical transcript?

Check **Allow On-Demand Transcript Translation**, **Allow AI Translations** and access to that conversation.

### How can we improve translation of our terminology?

Review **Translate Instructions** and, where supported, **Setup Translation Examples**. Ask Powerfront to confirm that the configured translation service uses the supplied guidance.