AI Translations Replace Literary Translators

Publishers are beginning to run backlist and high‑volume genres (e.g., Harlequin romances) through machine‑translation pipelines with minimal human post‑editing, directly substituting freelance contract translators. This business model prioritizes throughput and cost‑reduction over traditional human translation craft and labor standards. — If this spreads, it will reshape translation labor markets, book‑quality standards, copyright/licensing practice, and cultural consumption—forcing policy and industry responses on wages, attribution, and provenance.