Introducing a Smart Language Translator That Fits Right In Your Ear

Guide books and translation apps can help bridge the gap when you're trying to communicate with someone who speaks a different language, but they can also interrupt the flow of dialogue and make conversations feel stilted. According to Gizmag, a New York-based company called Waverly Labs has developed a more seamless solution: Pilot, an earpiece translator that almost instantaneously translates a multilingual conversation into the wearers' language of choice.

Waverly Labs founder and CEO Andrew Ochoa says he decided to create the wearable tech after he met a French woman and wanted a better way to speak to and understand her. For two years, Ochoa and his team researched and developed the Pilot earpiece. Now, the company is preparing to launch the device, which will be able to translate Latin and Romance languages (like English, Spanish, French, and Italian). Eventually, Waverly Labs hopes to incorporate more like Slavic, Semitic, Hindi, and East Asian languages.

To use the Pilot, both people in the conversation need to be wearing an earpiece (each package arrives with two). Then, when one person speaks in their native language, the device will translate the words into the language of the other person wearing an earpiece. You can watch the technology in action in the video above.

This summer, the company will also release an app that doesn't require earpieces. Instead, both parties simply speak into the phone and the app will show the translated conversation as text.

To help fund the product (orders are expected to ship next year), Waverly Labs will soon launch an Indiegogo campaign and open up the lines for pre-orders. In addition to the pair of earpieces, the package will include a charger and an app download for $299.

[h/t Gizmag]

Images via Gizmag