Google has rolled out a new set of open AI translation models called TranslateGemma. These models are built on Gemma 3 and are designed only for language translation. Google says the goal is to make high-quality translation tools more accessible to developers and researchers.
TranslateGemma supports 55 languages. This includes major global languages and several that usually get ignored by AI systems. The models come in three sizes so they can run on different devices.
What TranslateGemma is and how it works
TranslateGemma is not a chat tool. It is not an app. It is a collection of AI models focused purely on translation.
Google created these models by transferring knowledge from its larger Gemini AI into smaller Gemma-based systems. This process allows strong translation performance without needing massive computing power.
There are three versions. The 4B model is meant for phones and edge devices. The 12B model can run on regular laptops. The 27B model is designed for cloud use and can run on a single GPU or TPU.
Google says this makes TranslateGemma flexible. Developers can choose the version that fits their hardware and budget.
Language support and why TranslateGemma matters
TranslateGemma has been trained and tested across 55 languages. This includes English, Hindi, Spanish, French, and Chinese. It also includes several low-resource languages that usually suffer from poor translations.
Google claims the models make fewer mistakes than earlier Gemma translation systems. The improvements also carry over to image text translation. Text inside images can be translated more accurately, even though the models were not retrained specifically for images.
TranslateGemma is aimed at builders, not everyday users. Most people will never see it directly. But it can power future translation apps, tools, and services across phones, laptops, and the cloud.
The launch comes as competition in AI translation heats up. OpenAI recently introduced ChatGPT Translate, which focuses on user-facing translation across text, voice, and images. Google’s approach is different. TranslateGemma is about open access and infrastructure.
Together, these launches show one thing clearly. AI translation is no longer just a feature. It is becoming a core layer of how people communicate across languages.
