Blog Articles

Across the Middle East and Asia–Pacific, event organisers are experiencing a surge in demand for multilingual support. Interprefy’s latest market research reveals that 86 percent of event organisers in the Middle East and 71 percent in APAC already face high demand for multilingual delivery, driven by diverse audiences and cross‑border participation. This demand is matched by enthusiasm for emerging technologies: 100 percent of Middle Eastern organisers and 81 percent in APAC say they are likely or very likely to adopt remote simultaneous interpretation (RSI), AI‑generated live text captioning or AI‑powered speech translation. These statistics underline a shift from multilingual capability being a value‑added service to it becoming an essential requirement, particularly as governments across both regions tighten accessibility mandates and global investors call for equitable access to information.

On 20 October 2025, a major infrastructure incident at AWS disrupted many online services around the world. In this blog we will look at what exactly happened, why the event is important for organisations reliant on cloud infrastructure, and how Interprefy — our multilingual event and interpretation platform — was not materially affected thanks to the resilience built into our architecture.
We will also take the opportunity to highlight what event-organisers and technology buyers should look for when selecting a platform for mission-critical multilingual events.

There was a time — not that long ago — when offering interpretation at events felt like a gesture of generosity. Something above and beyond. Now? In 2025, it's fast becoming the baseline.

Part of that shift has to do with legislation. But it’s also about what audiences expect. They’re joining from dozens of countries, tuning in on different devices, and increasingly, they’re asking: Can I actually follow this in my own language?

Your company is planning a hybrid event, an all-hands meeting, or a public webcast — but have you considered how accessible your communication really is?

 The European Accessibility Act (EAA) is now in force. Since 28 June 2025, organisations offering covered products and services in the EU have had to meet new accessibility requirements — turning accessibility from a best-practice goal into a legal obligation. For teams delivering live audio, video, and spoken content, that means ensuring every channel is designed to be accessible from the start. 

Finance and insurance companies handle vast amounts of sensitive information — from confidential client information to regulatory compliance records and high-value transactions. A single breach can trigger severe consequences, including regulatory fines, loss of trust, and financial damage. In an era of cross-border operations and hybrid teams, the risk of data interception, cyberattacks, and compliance violations has never been higher, especially when multilingual communication is involved. Without a secure, trusted multilingual meeting platform, even confidential meetings can become vulnerable.

In today’s world, where most events are global and multilingual, ensuring that everyone can follow along is a must. Whether you’re hosting a global conference, managing a corporate town hall, or running a live-streamed webinar, close captions and subtitles are no longer something you can overlook. They are the key to making your message clear, inclusive, and impactful.

In 2014, a bold idea was born in Zurich that would forever change the interpretation and translation industry. Kim Ludvigsen, the visionary founder of Interprefy, was attending a conference when he noticed the outdated booths and equipment used for interpretation—technology that hadn’t seen much change since the 1960s. Inspired by the widespread use of smartphones and the internet, he posed a pivotal question that would spark a revolution: why couldn’t interpreters work remotely and attendees use their own devices to access event interpretations? This question marked the beginning of Remote Simultaneous Interpretation (RSI). 

Did you know that women involved in rear-end car crashes are three times more likely to suffer whiplash injuries compared to men? There’s a reason for this. According to a BBC report, the crash test dummies used to simulate car accidents are nearly all built to reflect the average male build and weight. This means that, in most cases, car safety is optimised for men to the neglect of 50% of the population. 

First published on Smartmeetings.com

It’s 2023, and we’re still talking about a lack of accessibility in the events industry.

From an absence of diverse panel speakers to a lack of options for those visually or hearing impaired, events still aren’t catering to everyone. And we’re not just talking about providing wheelchair access either, something which is also quite high/low in the industry.