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Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Historian Sampath, technologist Chauhan build AI tool for faster book translations
Representative Image BENGALURU: Bengaluru-based Naav AI, an artificial intelligence startup co-founded by historian Vikram Sampath and technologist Sandeep Singh Chauhan, has spent the past few months in stealth. But the problem they're chasing is hiding in plain sight: India has too much English and too little access. 'A book like Savarkar's took nearly two years to appear in Marathi,' Sampath, whose experience with delayed translations across languages like Hindi, Marathi, and Kannada directly shaped Naav's mission. "Only 5-6% of India reads in English. Yet English dominates everything, books, media, even AI training data." Naav's first product, TransLit, targets this imbalance. It blends multiple large language models (LLMs) and a proprietary workflow to rapidly translate long-form text across six Indian languages – Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. An average 300-page book, Sampath claims, can now be translated to first draft in under an hour. Human editors then step in through a custom dashboard, refining output line-by-line and feeding their changes back into the engine. Chauhan, a former senior tech executive who led digital transformation at the Technicolor Group, said Naav isn't trying to build a foundational LLM. Instead, the team is building agentic workflows that orchestrate multiple public and private models depending on language and context. "We've seen models like Claude work well for Hindi. But for southern languages, accuracy drops to around 50%. That's where our orchestration and feedback loops come in," he said. The system currently achieves around 60-65% base accuracy, with ambitions to push toward 80%. The founders are quick to clarify that Naav is not about replacing human translators. "This is not a zero-touch translation," said Sampath. "The goal is speed and scale, not displacement." Naav AI has raised early backing from Bhavish Aggarwal and Silicon Valley investor Asha Jadeja Motwani. Its initial client is publishing house BlueOne Ink, which has committed a pipeline of 30 books. Of these, 18 are already in production. Beyond text, Naav is eyeing audio. Its second product, ZuNaav FM, is being built to generate immersive, multilingual audiobooks and thematic content using voice synthesis and background engineering. "Imagine listening to Tipu Sultan's biography narrated in my voice, with war scenes playing in the background," Sampath said. The startup's next step is scale. For now, Naav runs a service model with in-house and contract language experts. Eventually, the plan is to offer it as a software-as-a-service platform to publishers and enterprises. "We're not just translating text," Chauhan said. "We're translating access." Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Accepting the VFX Oscar, ‘Dune: Part Two' VFX Supervisor Salutes ‘Incredible MPC' Following Technicolor's Shutdown
Accepting the visual effects Oscar for 'Dune : Part Two,' production VFX supervisor Paul Lambert acknowledged the contributions of the film's VFX vendors, including DNEG and Wylie Co. as well as the 'incredible MPC.' MPC – whose work has included 'Mufasa' The Lion King,' 'The Lion King,' and 'The Jungle Book' – is the VFX company that closed on Monday when its parent company Technicolor ceased operations. In a memo to employees, Technicolor Group CEO Caroline Parot wrote, 'due to inability to find new investors for the full Group, despite extensive efforts, [Paris-headquartered] Technicolor Group has filed for Court 'recovery procedure' before the French Court of Justice.' More from Variety Andrew Garfield's Reading Glasses Are His New Awards Show Signature What Does the 'Planet of the Apes' Franchise Have to Do to Win a VFX Oscar? Behind 'Flow's' Surprise Oscar Win, The First For Latvia: 'I Hope That You'll Open Doors to Independent Animation Filmmakers' The news was met with shock and sadness in the visual effects community. MPC operated in countries including the U.S., UK, Canada and India and employed thousands of artists. It was founded as The Moving Picture Company in the Soho section of London in 1970, and moved into features when the 'Harry Potter' movies were made. In addition to 'Mufasa,' MPC's recent work include 'Kraven the Hunter,' 'Young Woman and the Sea' and 'Emilia Perez.' For many VFX veterans, the timing of the shut down, just prior to the Academy Awards, was a sad reminder of the demise of respected VFX studio Rhythm & Hues, which filed for bankruptcy less than two weeks before the 2013 Academy Awards, where its work on 'Life of Pi' won the VFX Oscar. Denis Villeneuve's 'Dune: Part Two' contains 2,156 VFX shots, using practical and digital techniques to expand the world of Arrakis. The harrowing wormriding sequence was a stunning highlight. Veteran production VFX supervisor Paul Lambert collected his fourth Academy Award, and special effect supervisor Gerd Nefzer earned his third. (The category record is held by Dennis Muren who holds eight VFX Oscars for films including 'Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back' and 'Jurassic Park.') Lambert and Nefzer won tonight's award with first-time nominees Stephen James and Rhys Salcombe. Best of Variety What's Coming to Disney+ in March 2025 What's Coming to Netflix in March 2025 New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week
Los Angeles Times
27-02-2025
- Business
- Los Angeles Times
VFX giant Technicolor lays off more than 200 workers in Culver City
Technicolor Group, the storied visual effects, motion graphics and animation company behind some of Hollywood's most memorable films, is shuttering operations, including in California. The company is laying off 217 workers and permanently closing its Culver City studio on Lindblade Street, according to a notice filed with California's Employment Development Department on Feb. 24 . Technicolor, headquartered in Paris, owns companies such as the Mill, MPC and Mikros Animation that have operations in Los Angeles County. The 110-year-old business —which famously brought color to the big screen — worked on such film classics as 'The Wizard of Oz,' Disney's 1940 film 'Pinocchio' and 'The Lion King.' In recent years, the company attempted to pivot from its reliance on film to adapt to the digital revolution. In 2022, Technicolor opened a sprawling campus in Culver City to handle the growing demand for physical effects from streaming services. But the film industry has also been plagued by several challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Hollywood strikes and the rise of artificial intelligence. Technicolor Group Chief Executive Caroline Parot told employees in a memo on Monday that the company has been experiencing financial difficulties, citing the pandemic and writers' strike in 2023 that lasted 148 days. 'As we have communicated over the past months, the Group has been experiencing difficulties linked to a variety of factors and has not been spared from external headwinds,' she wrote in the memo, viewed by The Times. The company, she told workers, hasn't been able to find new investors and filed for court 'recovery procedure' before the French Court of Justice to give Technicolor a way to keep afloat. Technicolor Group didn't respond to a request for comment. The company also operates in other major cities throughout North America, Europe and the United States, working on media, entertainment, advertising and games. In the United Kingdom, Technicolor's business has been placed in 'administration,' a legal process for companies that aren't able to pay off their debts and 440 workers have been made redundant, the BBC reported. Some studios have found other lifelines as Technicolor edges toward the brink of collapse. Variety, which previously reported on the memo, said that visual effects artists at the Mill are teaming up with Dream Machine FX on a new venture called Arc Creative. 'It goes without saying, the past few days have been filled with emotions: shock, anger, sorrow, concern, and ultimately, resolve,' artists who previously worked at the Mill told Variety in a statement. 'While the Mill as we know it has shut its doors, its spirit, its passion, and its legacy live on through its amazing and talented people.' Mikros Animation, Dream Machine FX and the Mill didn't respond to a request for comment. Technicolor Group has gone through several leadership changes since its start in 1915. The company has more than 14,600 employees, according to estimates based on LinkedIn data. Technicolor emerged from bankruptcy proceedings in 2020. Since then, it has sold off parts of its business, including its postproduction unit Technicolor Post for nearly $36.5 million in 2021.
Telegraph
25-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Studio behind Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind goes bust in the UK
The visual effects giant behind classics including The Wizard of Oz and Gone With the Wind has collapsed in the UK amid a sharp downturn for film producers. Paris-based Technicolor Group, which was founded in 1915, has filed for administration after bosses failed to find a buyer. The majority of the company's 440 employees in the UK have been made redundant. In a letter to UK staff over the weekend, Technicolor blamed a 'variety of factors' including the post-pandemic recovery, the US writers' strike and a troubled spin-off from its parent company. It said this had led to a 'slowdown in customer orders causing severe cash flow pressures'. The collapse spells the end of an era for one of the world's oldest film companies, which pioneered the technology used in colour films. Technicolor was invented by two former Massachusetts Institute of Technology professors. The company made its first feature film in 1917 and went on to develop hundreds of hits, including Pinocchio, Meet Me in St Louis, Vertigo and Breakfast at Tiffany's. The group acquired a number of major VFX and post-production studios including Soho-based The Mill and MPC, and its more recent blockbusters include the Harry Potter films, last year's Mufasa: The Lion King and the upcoming Mission: Impossible instalment. Special effects and post-production services are a critical component of the film-making process, with most modern films and TV series relying on animation and computer-generated imagery to create scenes that cannot be filmed in real life. Technicolor has also expanded into advertising and gaming, including the Fifa football franchise and Hogwarts Legacy. But Technicolor, which saw its UK losses surge to £52m in 2023 while revenues dropped by 30pc to £87m, has suffered a downturn in its fortunes in recent years amid wider troubles in the film and TV industry. Its collapse comes after lengthy production shutdowns caused by the pandemic and major Hollywood strikes as well as rising labour costs. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in 2020 as it sought to push through a restructuring. It has undergone a number of management changes and Technicolor was spun out of the wider French group, which has since been renamed Vantiva, in 2022. Directors have been in talks with potential buyers for a number of months, including Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds and private equity groups, but a deal has failed to materialise. Technicolor employs 10,000 people worldwide, with operations in the UK, US, France, India and Canada. The appointment of administrators at Interpath Advisory only affects Technicolor's UK operations. However, the group last week said it would shut down offices in the US and has also entered receivership in France. Nick Holloway, of Interpath, said: 'The Technicolor Group has a long and proud heritage, dating back more than a century and whose credits include working on famous films including Disney's Pinocchio in the 1940s, all the way through to more recently, Ridley Scott's Prometheus. 'Unfortunately, the economic headwinds which are affecting companies right across the creative industries have proved too challenging to overcome, which has led to Technicolor's UK business being placed into administration today. 'As we seek to affect an orderly wind-down of the business, we will endeavour to support the company's workforce who have been impacted by redundancy, as well as exploring options to realise the company's assets.'
