About whether AI dubbing could replace foreign-language subtitles in films.
Has this happened?
Yes 40 (36%)Not sure 41 (37%)No 30 (27%)
Votes cast 1–2 October 2026: 100,590 votes from 9,694 people.
Hacker News has set AI a lot of challenges over the years. Which ones has it met?
About whether AI dubbing could replace foreign-language subtitles in films.
Votes cast 1–2 October 2026: 100,590 votes from 9,694 people.
A couple points here.
1. AI might be able to prevent bad dubbing/subbing, but it will not be able to compete with _good_ dubbing/subbing in our lifetimes. There's an artistry there that no AI can match.
2. I love subtitles and prefer original audio + English subtitles in anything foreign-language. Besides the voices matching up to the movement of the actors' lips and thus not breaking my immersion, I also adore hearing how familiar emotions are reflected in languages I do not know. It makes me feel more connected to humanity.