Meta has expanded its AI translation capabilities for reels on Facebook and Instagram, adding Hindi and Portuguese to the previously supported English and Spanish languages.

The Meta AI translation system mimics a creator’s sound and tone while translating content, maintaining its original appeal across languages. The technology includes optional lip-syncing functionality that aligns translated audio with creators’ mouth movements for a more natural viewing experience.

“Meta AI translates, dubs, and lip syncs reels on Facebook and Instagram, so you can enjoy reels from around the world,” the company stated in its announcement. It says all translated reels will display a “Translated with Meta AI” label.

The service is available to Facebook creators with at least 1,000 followers and all public Instagram accounts in countries where Meta AI operates. The translation service is free.

“With translations now supported across English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Hindi, creators can share their content in some of the largest Reels markets on both Instagram and Facebook,” Meta explained.

User Controls

Meta has integrated control options for viewers who can choose to disable translations or watch reels in their original language through the settings menu. Users can manage language preferences through the audio and language section in the three-dot settings menu on both platforms.

The company indicates this feature is part of a broader strategy to connect global audiences, with “more languages coming soon” according to the announcement. This aligns with Meta’s stated goal of “making content more accessible for everyone,” as announced since the initial launch of AI translations in 2024.

Platform Competition

Meta’s expansion comes amid similar moves by competitor YouTube, which has been advancing its own AI dubbing capabilities. In December 2024, YouTube rolled out automatic dubbing from English into eight languages – including Hindi and Portuguese – with some support for dubbing back into English.

According to the YouTube announcement, their system “allows videos to be automatically dubbed into multiple languages without requiring additional work from content creators.” YouTube’s implementation focuses initially on knowledge and educational content creators.

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