DeepL announced on the 14th that 7 out of 10 office workers in Korea are using AI translation tools for their work, according to a survey conducted among domestic office workers.
The survey was conducted involving 500 office workers across various industries, including marketing, IT, and law, analyzing the status of AI translation tool usage, communication challenges, and perceptions of language AI. Among respondents, 67.6% utilized AI translation tools in their work, reporting practical effects such as time savings (91.7%), expense reduction (89.6%), and workload decrease (89.9%). In the future, 89.2% plan to continue using these tools, and 86.8% indicated they would increase their usage. The satisfaction rate with translation quality was 74.9%.
The most commonly used AI tool was general artificial intelligence (AI) at 88.4%, followed by AI translation tools (67.6%), AI meeting summary tools (26.6%), AI writing assistants (17.2%), and image generation tools (13.2%).
46.7% of respondents reported experiences of decreased product or service quality due to translation errors, while 35.8% mentioned experiencing project delays due to communication issues with overseas partners. Additionally, 31.4% reported losing business opportunities because of language misunderstandings, particularly among respondents in production, technology, and fieldwork, where 45.0% reported such experiences.
The most important factors considered when choosing an AI translator were accuracy (82.2%) and naturalness of sentences (73.7%), followed by speed (34.6%). The preference for quality was particularly pronounced among the MZ generation, customer-facing roles, and fieldworkers. 75.4% of respondents stated that AI translation tools help improve work efficiency, and 89.2% expressed plans to continue using them in the future.
Steve Loter, Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) at DeepL, noted, "Users of language AI in Korea are not just simple early adopters but discerning customers who demand accuracy in communication and an understanding of cultural contexts. The Korean market is a strategically important region, and we are continuously improving in ways that genuinely assist our customers."