Couple use AI translator to overcome their language barrier. When it fails, they start playing 'charades'
'The translator makes you have to be more in the moment because you have got to be reading it and listening.'
Some couples rely on shared hobbies or routines to stay connected. For David Duda and Hong Liang, connection depends on whether their phones are charged. Duda speaks English, and Liang speaks Mandarin. And when the app they rely on falters, Duda jokes that he becomes a "master of charades" just to make sure he can still understand his wife. Their relationship was recently featured by The New York Times and shared on their Instagram @nytimes, focusing on how the New Haven couple relies on Microsoft Translator to sustain their daily conversations.
Duda, 62, and Liang, 57, met in Xian, China, in 2019 when Duda traveled there with his brother. A mutual contact suggested Liang show him around the city, and by the end of the trip, Duda was convinced he had met someone special. "She is the most joyous, happy person you will ever meet," he told The New York Times. After he returned to Connecticut, they stayed in touch on WeChat, translating messages back and forth, even during the pandemic. "We spent the next two years on our phones getting to know each other better," Duda said. By the time travel restrictions eased in 2022, Liang booked a one-way flight to the United States. Duda met her at the airport holding a sign written in Chinese that read "Love of my life." "I was deeply touched, because at the airport in front of so many people, he did something that touched my heart," Liang said.
Since then, their daily life has been built around Microsoft Translator, a free app that converts their speech into written text in the other person's language. They own eight external battery packs because if their phones die, so does their ability to communicate. When they walk outside, one speaks while the other reads. If Duda tells a joke, he pauses his laughter until Liang finishes scanning the screen. "The translator makes you have to be more in the moment because you have got to be reading it and listening," Duda said. "You have to pay attention more, which obviously is a good thing when you are relating to your spouse."
Liang described him as attentive beyond the screen. "He pays attention to all the details and takes good care of me. He really knows and sees what I need," she said. The app, however, does not always cooperate. In one exchange, Liang described falling ill with Covid soon after landing in Connecticut. The translator rendered the Chinese term for the virus as "new crown," which led to confusion about what she meant. There have been moments when long answers disappear mid-sentence or emotional nuance gets flattened into something awkward, given that AI is only half-sophisticated right now. When that happens, they repeat themselves, slow down, use gestures, or pull up images online. Duda admits that when the software stumbles, he starts acting things out until the meaning lands.
While machine translation tools can break down language barriers, they also carry limitations that can make communication challenging. A 2023 study of machine translation perceptions in the United Kingdom found that tools like Google Translate have notable limitations that affect the effectiveness of communication in real-world interactions. The study highlights that machine translation can help users grasp basic meaning, but it also shows that errors and quality issues remain a barrier to fully accurate understanding.
Despite the obstacle, Duda and Liang say they have not fought in three years of marriage. "Maybe the best way to have a lasting marriage is to speak different languages," Duda joked. They estimate they have learned around 200 words in each other's language, but fluency is not the goal; patience is. When the translator misfires, they have a phrase for it: "bu bu hao," which they pronounce playfully as "boo boo how," meaning "not good." Then they try again. "It is kind of fun for us," Duda said. "If people were not in love, it would be much more frustrating."
You can follow The New York Times (@nytimes) for more such news content.
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