
About this Event
As AI-driven language technologies become increasingly central to global communication, concerns grow about their impact on linguistic diversity and cultural heritage. This lecture examines the historical forces shaping language dominance and extinction, and explores how current advances in Natural Language Processing and large language models may both endanger and enable the preservation of non-global languages. Grounded in perspectives from linguistics, language technologies, and AI ethics, the talk calls for action to ensure that technological innovation supports equitable and culturally aware language futures.
Biography: Dr Maite Melero, Barcelona Supercomputing Center
Maite Melero she has been a researcher at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS) since 2019, where she leads the Machine Translation Group within the Language Technologies Unit. Her research addresses key challenges in natural language processing, with a particular focus on low-resource languages and the development of open-source AI tools. She is actively involved in national and European R\&D projects that explore various aspects of machine translation and computational language processing. Before joining BSC, she was a researcher at Pompeu Fabra University and at Microsoft Research, where she led the development of the Spanish grammar checker and collaborated on the Microsoft Translator project.
She has served as an advisor to the Spanish Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (SEDIA) and to the Government of Catalonia on issues related to machine translation and language technologies. She has also collaborated with the European Parliament on initiatives promoting linguistic equality in the digital age. She has organized international events such as the MultilingualBIO workshops, the SIGUL workshop series on low-resource languages, and the LT4All 2025 conference promoted by UNESCO.
_________________________________________________
Ticket Information
- Click on the 'Reserve a spot' button and add your name and contact details to the short form.
- This event will be held in the Curtis Auditorium, Herschel Building at Newcastle University (NE1 7RU).
- We operate a paperless ticketing system, so you do not need to print your tickets. Just give your name at the door.
- To avoid crowding, audience members are asked to arrive for events no earlier than 15 minutes before the advertised start time.
- For more information about what to expect when attending a lecture visit: www.ncl.ac.uk/events/public-lectures/attending-a-lecture
Venue Details and Accessibility
- The Herschel Building is located a 3-minute walk from Haymarket Metro Station and Bus Station, and is easily accessible by Public Transport.
- The Curtis Auditorium is a tiered lecture theatre and has 8 designated spaces for wheelchair users, with flat-level access. There is also a hearing loop system and an accessible toilet nearby.
- Please note any access requirements on your booking form.
Latest News
You can view event information and join the public lectures mailing list to receive the latest news at www.ncl.ac.uk/events/public-lectures.
Disclaimer
The University will make all reasonable efforts to deliver INSIGHTS Public Lectures. However, it may be necessary to make changes in response to significant disruption.
Data Protection Statement
The information you provide will be used in connection with the organisation of this event and to communicate with you about the event. Information will be stored securely by Eventbrite and will only be accessed by the event organisers. It will not be shared with a third party.
If you would like more information about how we manage personal data more generally, including your rights under law, and the contact details of the University’s Data Protection Officer, please see our website: www.ncl.ac.uk/data.protection
To read the Eventbrite Privacy Policy visit: www.eventbrite.co.uk/support/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/eventbrite-privacy-policy
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Curtis Auditorium, Herschel Building, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
GBP 0.00