September 23, 2026
Translators learn to manage AI: 70 Chinese universities shut down 18 programs
In May 2026, a survey of 70 Chinese universities recorded cuts to 8 Japanese-language programs, 5 German programs, and 5 translation programs. Instructor Ao Manyun redesigned a 60-year-old Swahili translation course: students now task AI translators, handle complex translation work, and assess the result.
The course previously taught students to translate themselves. Now Ao Manyun prepares them to task AI translators, handle complex translation work, and assess the result.
In practice, students translated dialogue from «Ne Zha 2»: one group used 6 tools, while another varied prompts in DeepSeek. Every group edited the output because they were dissatisfied with it. A translator’s work is shifting from the first draft to task-setting and editing.
For the next academic year, China’s Ministry of Education approved 38 new majors, including embodied intelligence at nine universities.
Source
