ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION IN AUDIOVISUAL TRANSLATION: REFLECTIONS ON KAZAKHSTAN’S PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

Abstract

The accelerating digital transformation of media and the rapid deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) are reshaping audiovisual translation (AVT), creating both substantial opportunities and important challenges. This article examines the integration of AI into AVT in Kazakhstan and explicitly frames the analysis in relation to the Presidential Address “Kazakhstan in the Age of Artificial Intelligence,” which foregrounds national digitalization, institutional consolidation of innovation policy, and the coordination role of higher education and research institutions. The aim of the study is to identify prospects, limitations and policy-relevant pathways for AI-assisted AVT in Kazakhstan, and to assess how local initiatives align with the national digital agenda.

Methodologically, the research employs a mixed-methods design that combines a comparative literature review, content and discourse analysis of audiovisual materials and policy documents, and case studies of automated subtitling and dubbing pilots. The study integrates international scholarship on natural language processing and AVT with empirical examination of domestic projects, including national language models and automated speech tools.

Results reveal a dual effect of digitalization: AI substantially increases the speed, accessibility and scalability of AVT workflows, yet current systems often fail to reproduce culturally marked meanings, idiomaticity and multimodal nonverbal cues. The analysis indicates that addressing these gaps requires multimodal corpora, culturally informed algorithms, ethical audit mechanisms and interdisciplinary training that reconceptualizes the translator as editor, curator and quality controller.

This work contributes an interdisciplinary framework linking political-strategic discourse and linguistic practice and offers actionable recommendations for curriculum modernization, technology deployment and policy design. Practically, the findings support capacity building in higher education, industry and public institutions to implement AI in AVT while safeguarding Kazakhstan’s linguistic and cultural heritage.