Recently, Shueisha announced their plan to use artificial intelligence (AI) in their MangaPlus platform. Fans were uncertain about what this meant. It turns out, Shueisha will use AI to arrange the translated text in their manga.
While this might seem like a reasonable choice, many fans weren’t happy. They think the final result doesn’t look as good as when humans do it.
Typesetting means arranging the translated words in a manga’s speech bubbles. It’s important because of the differences between Japanese and Latin alphabets. The first series to use AI typesetting, as pointed by users online, is Rugby Rumble by Daisuke Miyata.
MangaPlus credits showed that Orange Inc. was credited for the lettering in Rugby Rumble, which means an AI did the typesetting. Fans can find out that Orange Inc. focuses on using AI for manga localization. Unfortunately, it seems like they still have a long way to go based on this first attempt.
It seems the lettering of new series "Rugby Rumble" by Daisuke Miyata on Manga Plus was fixed.
— Manga Mogura RE (@MangaMoguraRE) September 30, 2023
It was previously done by Orange Inc. alone, a company that specialises in AI.
Translator Mei Amaki is now credited for the lettering as well.
Image © Shueisha, Daisuke Miyata pic.twitter.com/svGQu3zYtg
Following the criticism by fans and professionals, MangaPlus updated the chapter with proper type setting, font sizing and spacing. Additionally, they credited the translator Mei Amaki (Mugen Creations LLC) alongside Orange Inc. and Media Do Co. Ltd.
So, what do you think of AI in creative work? Let us know on our social media.!
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