In that city, Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalamsaid two-way, real-time translation for city council and school board meetings aimed at knocking down barriers for those who don’t speak English but want to participate in local government will now be available.
“This is the power of AI to bring people closer together, closer to government and connect a community that may have felt disconnected,” Arulampalam said, in an announcement at city hall Thursday. “The city of Hartford is an incredibly, rich diverse city. And we appreciate that diversity. But we also know that many have felt disconnected from the workings of government.”
One estimate places the number of languages spoken in the city at close to 50. The school district also serves students who speak many different languages.
The translation service is part of city government’s transition to Google Workspace from the Microsoft Suite platform, the mayor said, and is projected to save the city $2.1 million over the next five years. Arulampalam said the accuracy of the translation is of a higher rate than if there were a person performing the same service.
The real-time component distinguishes Hartford from what other towns and cities elsewhere in the country are doing to tap into AI technology to address language barriers. The Google service, which can translate up to 80 different languages, also is able to infuse the emotion of the speaker into the translation.
The service is expected to launch at Tuesday’s city council meeting.
The service will work this way: two video screens will be set up, one facing the speaker and the other, the council or board. The screen facing the member of the public will reflect the language of the speaker, while other will be simultaneously translating into English.
The same service will be available for those watching remotely, essential for people who may work multiple jobs and can’t necessarily come to a meeting in person, said Councilwoman Maly Rosado, who has been lobbying for such a service for a couple of years.
Rosado said the service will be a major step forward in breaking down language barriers.
“The Hispanic community, the Latino community, being one of the largest communities in the city, it will be able to empower them so they are able to speak up and communicate with government,” Rosado said. “Government only works if you’re heard, seen and understood.”
Cameron Groves, Google’s director of rapid innovation for the online giant’s public sector services, said, “The future of government services will be defined by personalization and equitable engagement for all residents. “Google Cloud’s innovative technology such as Translation AI is directly enabling this transformation, and cities like Hartford are leading the way.”
Thursday’s announcement is separate from Hartford’s aspirations to establish an applied AI center to focus on testing and workforce training.
“It is separate, but we want to be one of the leading centers in the country for AI and for a workforce that is ready for the technological changes of tomorrow,” Arulampalam said. “To do that, we have to lead from city hall. If we can be among the most innovative city halls in the country, that’s exactly what we are doing here.”
Hartford also is seeking state funding from the “Innovation Clusters” grant program. Hartford was one of three cities in the state vying for a share in $100 million.
Late last month, the state Department of Economic and Community Developmentannounced half of the program’s total — a $50.5 million grant, would go to New Haven. But DECD said Hartford and the other remaining city, Stamford, were still under consideration.
Google also has committed to being partner in what is proposed to be a $90 million AI Center near Dunkin’ Park, Hartford’s minor league ballpark.
©2025 Hartford Courant. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
