Language in the Human-Machine Era (LITHME)

In the near future, our senses will be thoroughly augmented by wearable devices that will intermediate what we see, hear and speak in real time. We will also increasingly talk to intelligent technology. What will this mean for how people identify with specific languages or take turns in a conversation? What will be the effect for legislation and jurisdiction, translation, language teaching, and other forms of language work? Could a high reliance on real-time language technologies actually change the structure of language? Longer term, could developments in brain-machine interfaces allow to complement or even supersede language altogether? These are some of the questions addressed by the interdisciplinary COST network “Language in the Human-Machine Era” (LITHME) with members from every EU member state, plus a number of other countries outside the EU. We are a growing community, spurring a dialogue between linguists and tech developers as well as a public discussion about the benefits and risks of future technologies. Shining a light on critical issues such as inequality of access to technologies, privacy and security, and new possibilities for deception and crime will serve to balance the debate that is often clouded by hype.