T-Mobile is building live call translation directly into its network

One upside of the AI boom is that live translation is quickly becoming more mainstream. Google’s version on Pixel phones is the obvious example, but you can get it in dedicated earbuds, smart glasses, and many other places. But most of these tools still depend on the right hardware or app. T-Mobile is removing another layer of that friction by building live translation directly into its wireless network.

In a press release today, the carrier announced what it calls the first real-time AI platform integrated into a cellular network, starting with a feature named Live Translation. The service can translate phone calls in more than 50 languages in near real time, and T-Mobile says it works on any phone connected to its network — including basic flip phones — as long as at least one person on the call is a T-Mobile customer enrolled in the beta.

During the beta, Live Translation is activated by dialing *87* while on a call. T-Mobile says the system automatically detects the two languages being spoken and translates the conversation back and forth. The company’s promotional video above appears to show a voice command such as “Hey T-Mobile, translate,” but the beta instructions only reference dialing *87*, suggesting that voice activation may come later.

Because the processing happens at the network level, there’s no app to install and no specific device required. T-Mobile says the beta will be free while it runs and will open for eligible postpaid consumer accounts starting February 11 through the T-Life app or its website. Prepaid, business, and government accounts aren’t currently supported.

Shifting live translation from device to carrier network might have been an inevitable step, but it’s a significant one. Other carriers will no doubt follow suit, so it may not be too long before language barriers on most calls are a thing of the past.