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    What is the Potential of Language AI for Global Business?

    Feb. 20, 2025
    72% of executives are planning to integrate AI into daily operations, with 25% targeting AI for specialized tasks like translation.

    DeepL, a global Language AI company, released its white paper, "The language revolution: how AI improves the way businesses communicate." Based on findings from a new DeepL survey of EMEA and U.S. business leaders, as well as external sources, the report explores the intersection of language and AI in business, covering topics such as global corporate AI adoption trends, financial impact of poor communication on international businesses, and the value of Language AI tools.

    "English has become the go-to language for international business, but the reality is that only about 20% of the world's population speaks it fluently," said Jarek Kutylowski, CEO and Founder, DeepL. 

    "This has a significant impact on global businesses and professionals – over half of C-level leaders spend more than an hour each day dealing with ineffective communication, a challenge that also extends to other management and leadership levels. To address this, what we're seeing through our research is that businesses are increasingly turning to AI solutions – 72% are planning to integrate AI into daily operations, with 25% targeting specific tasks such as translation in 2025."

    Businesses Budgeting for AI Integration

    DeepL believes that in 2025, businesses will be looking more closely into how AI is bringing ROI-positive value to their organization. 

    Top AI budgeting allocations include business operations (28%), workplace tools (19%) and specialized tasks such as translation (25%). The Netherlands show the highest AI spending commitment, with 30% of businesses in the nation planning to integrate AI into all operations, closely followed by Germany (29%), Belgium (28%), France (26%) and the United States (25%)

    Communication Barriers 

    DeepL believes that language barriers are emerging as a key challenge for global businesses. Market expansion (35%), engaging customers across borders (32%), and customer service (24%) are cited as the top language obstacles faced in their business while navigating this global landscape, in the survey.

    In particular, DeepL believes expanding into new markets is a significant challenge for European companies operating in geographies with multiple official languages or export-driven economies—including Belgium (45%), Germany (41%), the UK (44%), and the US (37%)—which represents the world's second-largest export economy. Of the markets surveyed, France (42%), the US (38%) and Belgium (38%) also reported the most significant challenges while serving customers from other markets.

    AI Tools

    DeepL says that businesses are merging language AI with human expertise and oversight to  minimize the challenges associated with cross-cultural communication—particularly in highly regulated industries with high-stakes communications, like legal and manufacturing. This includes utilizing Language AI alongside external translation agencies (32%) and supporting in-house translation teams with AI (31%), to embedding AI into key products (26%).