… Also, I think AI ‘translation’ exposure will generate enough early interest to help publishers negate the risk of investing in major translation projects. As one example, I suspect Voetius will become a household name BEFORE we get the authoritative English translation of his disputations, and the interest his way will fuel the project itself. Nearly unthinkable pre-AI.

AI-generated ‘translations’ of technical theological works are placeholders awaiting a definitive work. At best they serve a modest interim step, to give general impressions and to generate interest, but should discourage no gifted translator from these labors, especially you POB!

[A few voice-dictated thoughts while gaping up at the old stones of Edinburgh Castle on a soggy day.] Recently, at dinner with friends, I sketched out the contrast between the early YRR pop-revival in Edwards’s works and the Reformed renaissance underway two decades later. The differences are stark. I have never witnessed anything like these early stages of hyper-theological development in the Reformed world today, and I really look forward to the decade ahead. I think “Reformed renaissance” is the right phrase. The momentum is growing and, like early YRR, people outside the fold are taking note (hence the uptick in anti-Calvinist animosity — expect more of it). But before this Reformed renaissance accelerates beyond where it’s at now, first must come an era of hyper-translation that will feed and fuel what’s to come. If Latin continues trending ubiquitous among younger Reformed types, a possible workflow re: translations could emerge in a labor split. (1) Those with the tech and care to open-source / crowdsource the keyed Latin texts, moving from OCR to markup, text-normalizing, noting changes / variants — a cohort working in tandem to create one respected editio critica online. (2) Off those Latin texts, a skilled team generating dynamic placeholder AI ‘translations’ using fine-tuned models that become trusted. (3) Slower, more formal translation projects from experts whose work is peer-reviewed and deemed definitive, but in a new flow that is sped up if (1) and (2) do their work well. Added up, here’s what I see: • Collaboration thrives. • Latin makes a comeback across the board among theologians, preachers, and serious lay theologians. (Perhaps to the point that we see some few classic multi-volume *opera omnia* make a retypeset print comeback.) • One or two Reformed sites become the trusted source(s) for all keyed Latin texts. • A team operating from a highly specific process becomes trusted to guide the generation of makeshift AI translations that are both ephemeral and yet carry gravitas. • Latin/English side-by-side will be the new norm. While I doubt (2) will ever replace (3), I do think (1) and (3) are here to stay and will naturally and easily coexist from this point forevermore. Any serious theologian will consult the Latin at all points and that consultation will be effortless. • (1) and (2) combined could create a killer website, and with added AI search features, (2) could find a more permanent value. • (1) and (2) will put pressure on, accelerate, and hopefully help serve (3) in the end. • But let’s not get all amped over translations, as exciting as it looks right now. I think this era is a hallway — a necessary hallway — leading to an even more important stage to come. My tuppence.