"Creating value through the evolution of biology and computers."

First of all, could you describe your company?

Pixie Dust Technologies integrates computer science with proprietary wave control technology, to establish an environment that integrates computers and non-computing elements, while pursuing the concept of 'Digital Nature.' Currently, we primarily focus on the 'Personal Care & Diversity' domain, utilising wave control technology, and the 'Workspace & Digital Transformation' domain, leveraging metamaterials. We aim to mediate the disparity between the evolution of biology and computers to generate more advanced value.

Pixie Dust Technologies, Inc. https://pixiedusttech.com/

“The challenge lies in the time and effort required to correct translations.”

What translation tasks and challenges have you faced in the past?

Regarding translation tools, we were using another company's tool known for its high translation accuracy. However, that tool left many parts untranslated. We had to manually check the translated text and enter corrections for each discrepancy. While automatic translation results were convenient, the process of correcting sentences that sounded unnatural or removing inappropriate words ultimately consumed a significant amount of time.

For instance, if the translation result was in English, only individuals with proficiency in English could review and make corrections. This meant that those individuals were involved in translation-related tasks, leading to a concentration of workload on them. The difficulty in editing unnatural or inappropriate sentences and the considerable time and effort required in the verification process posed significant challenges for our translation tasks.

"Identifying correction points with a glance – incredibly easy and convenient."

What was the deciding factor behind the introduction of YarakuZen?

While searching for a tool that could quickly identify and easily correct translation errors, such as misinterpretations or omissions, I came across YarakuZen. YarakuZen stood out for its clear separation of the original and translated text into paragraphs, making it easy to read, and its highlighting of correction points, which was very convenient. Additionally, the ability to use multiple translation engines was quite appealing.

I like the fact that I can compare the translation of one sentence with the results of Google Translate and other translation engines and judge that "this translation is more appropriate." YarakuZen can use not only those provided by major companies such as Google Translate, but also YarakuTranslate β, which is provided independently by Yaraku, and some employees like to use this. The fact that you can compare translations from multiple translation engines in this way is also very convenient, so it was a decisive factor in the introduction.

How has your situation improved with YarakuZen?

We had challenges in translation tasks similar to those mentioned earlier, so I thought, 'With YarakuZen, corrections can be made easily!' First of all, in YarakuZen, you can review the original and translated texts at the paragraph level, eliminating the need to repeatedly check where the corresponding text is.The elimination of this hassle alone has reduced the burden on the members who need translations for their work, and has greatly improved the issues we had before.

The Quality Assistant feature, in particular, proved to be very useful. Even if you don't identify the areas that need correction yourself, the tool automatically highlights the correction points, reducing the effort needed to search for potential errors. With the previous tool we used, there were instances where we didn't notice mistakes during checks. However, with YarakuZen's Quality Assistant tool, it is intuitively and immediately clear where corrections are needed, making it truly convenient and, in my opinion, superior to other translation tools. This eliminates overlooking correction points, saving a significant amount of time spent searching for areas that need correction.

"To eliminate native-speaker checking in translation tasks."

What do you hope to see in the future from YarakuZen?

In the past, the main use was for all kinds of English-language accounting documents for IPOs, but recently the need for internal use has expanded beyond that. Since YarakuZen is also used by employees other than in-house translators, the first step is to eliminate native checking and facilitate communication between Japanese and English at the document level.

And while in some cases a cursory review is fine for English to Japanese, a high degree of accuracy is required for Japanese to English translation, as we Japanese are the ones who check the translated text. We are very happy that the improved accuracy of translations will reduce the workload on translators and allow non-translators to be involved in the translation process, thus sharing the workload. In particular, we hope to see improvements in translation accuracy, as unique Japanese expressions can become unnatural or difficult to read when translated directly into English.

"Expanding Products to Overseas"

Please tell us about your company's future prospects and vision.

With being listed on NASDAQ in 2023, our company aims to be a successful model and pioneer of Japanese companies entering the global market. Currently, the actual product is also preparing to begin overseas expansion, with sales plans steadily underway. From our beginnings as a Japanese startup, we aim to quickly expand overseas and become a successful example of a global company.