Stenographers and Artificial Intelligence

The impact of Artificial Intelligence

For a long time, we knew that Artificial Intelligence (AI) would burst into our lives. But we never thought that it would happen so abruptly and enter practically every profession and all our daily activities. Stenographic reporting was no exception. Several colleagues have asked me for my opinion on the impact that AI will have on our profession.

I answer as I did more than 15 years ago when I was asked whether voice recognition technologies would one day replace the work of stenographers and court reporters. Undoubtedly, voice recognition will replace the work of stenographers and court reporters worldwide. That is the evolution of all stenographic systems. We must encourage its use, since the only way to defend a profession is to progress and to adapt to new technologies. Professionals should not fear change. I am very attached to computer-aided stenography—I have a method that bears my name—but I know that technology will evolve and bring more efficient systems. I will adapt to them and defend them as I defend the one which I use today.

My opinion has not changed. Back then, the system that appeared as the option to revolutionize the profession in the future was speaker-operated voice recognition, in which the user would train the software to improve the accuracy of simultaneous transcription. The results achieved by Italian Armando Covello in various international speed and accuracy competitions attested to it. However, the progress was quick and because of it, automatic voice recognition systems emerged which were capable of recognizing voices in any language without the need for prior training and which could be used even with a mobile device. This system was used for many years by millions. It was the starting point for many debates about the future of stenography.

Now, the sudden emergence of automatic voice recognition systems enriched with artificial intelligence is a revolution that invites us to rethink our role as stenographers and professional reporters in a world that is changing very quickly.

Reaching for the new

I have always argued that we cannot make the mistake of clinging to any particular recording system, whether shorthand or computer-aided stenography, as this would represent a senseless struggle. We have no choice but to value and incorporate new tools that help us to achieve greater efficiency in our task.

As I have always said, the collective struggle and defense should focus on the profession of the stenographer or professional reporter, dedicated to providing written records of oral trials, parliamentary debates or conferences; places where spoken words predominate. No one can deny that stenographers and court reporters have played a crucial role for years, contributing to the transparency and publicity of all kinds of events. Our skill, perfected over the years, to accurately capture spoken words in real time has been praised and is fundamental to creating detailed, precise, high-quality records. It is a task that requires not only speed and accuracy but a deep understanding of language and the ability to handle high-pressure situations.

I remember working on an important oral trial in 2017 with real-time computer-aided stenography. Alongside my recording, I decided to test an automatic voice recognition system. It still lacked the richness provided by artificial intelligence, which today can differentiate speakers, write words correctly that would otherwise need to be checked later, and place punctuation marks appropriately. It was that day that I stopped writing with the stenography machine. A superior system was emerging that I could not compete with. I recalled the case of Dutch chess grandmaster Jan Hein Donner. When he was asked how he would prepare if he had to play against a supercomputer, he said that he would bring a hammer (Oppenheimer, 2014).

Artificial intelligence, instead of being a threat, offers revolutionary potential for our profession and opens the door for many people to find employment without the need to go through an arduous training process, years of intensive practice and costly equipment. It is a great ally in our work; it does not tire over the hours and always performs at its best, providing us with texts that we can correct and improve in much less time than if we had to do the entire process from scratch.

Seizing the opportunity

Teachers and students of stenography and professional reporting can continue to perfect their skills. Skill and speed in writing are fundamental in our profession and will continue to be required in many areas, due to tradition or a clients’ preference for interacting with a human being. However, we must always be open to learning and using new technologies. Artificial intelligence does not diminish our merit. On the contrary, it offers us tools to make our work more efficient and precise. Instead of fearing change, we should embrace this new reality and find ways to integrate it into our daily practice.

As professionals, we must reflect on the added value that we can bring to the work that artificial intelligence offers us. What is not perfect today will be soon. I am fascinated by the automatically generated texts and the potential of this technology. Far from being worried by it, I use it and celebrate it. Artificial intelligence has not come to take our jobs but to transform our profession and open up new opportunities. Let us adapt to technological advancements that allow us to continue evolving and improving our field.

Nicolás Marino is an Argentine stenographer, creator of the Marino Method of Computer-Aided Stenography for Spanish, and the founder of StenoCap, a company dedicated to the training of stenographers in judicial transcription. He dedicates this article to the memory of Daniel Záttera.

Reference

Oppenheimer, Andrés (2014). Sálvese quien Pueda. El futuro del trabajo en la era de la automatización. Debate.