Orange localizes manga at an unprecedented scale with Claude

Orange, a leading manga startup, uses Claude to deliver English-translated digital manga to a global audience by automating complex translation tasks while preserving the natural dialogue and character voices that make manga unique.

With Claude, Orange:

• Achieves 5-7x efficiency improvements over existing processes
• Increased delivery capacity from 5 to 50 books per month—a 10x improvement
• Reduced generation time from over 10 hours to under 2 hours per manga volume
• Maintains 50-75% adoption rate of Claude-generated translations
• Successfully translates complex elements like onomatopoeia and specialized expressions
• Enables translators to focus on creative and nuanced aspects of localization

Meeting global demand for translated manga

The manga industry faces a massive translation bottleneck. Only 2% of Japanese manga gets officially translated, while demand grows with anime's rising popularity. The complexity of manga—combining cultural context, visuals, text, and specialized expressions—makes translation challenging and time-consuming.

"By developing a more efficient translation process, we aim to deliver all manga to everyone, creating a world where all can enjoy manga and ensuring creators receive proper returns for their work," said Rei Kuroda, VP of Studio Localization/Head of International Business at Orange.

Selecting Claude for superior translation capabilities

Orange evaluated various AI models' capabilities with professional translators. Kuroda said, "Our existing model couldn't solve several issues, but Claude 3 Opus solved every issue that we had. Our translators were very surprised and strongly recommended Opus for translation."

"Our Claude-powered agent model creates translations that feel natural and authentically capture the characters' tone and personality, while traditional machine and LLM-based translation struggle with 'mechanical accuracy.'"

The support experience also set Anthropic apart. Kuroda said, "The sales, support, and marketing teams were fantastic. AI companies don't usually offer so much support for startups, but the Anthropic team is unique in that regard."

Transforming manga localization with AI

Orange's technical implementation combines multiple AI technologies with Claude at its core:

• Translation agent model powered by Claude for core translation tasks
• Integration with inpainting technology to handle visual elements
• Direct image input capabilities with Claude 3.5 Sonnet, eliminating the need for intermediate processing steps
• Quality assurance automation to streamline the review process
• Uses Claude for coding development and internal tool creation

The migration to Claude 3.5 Sonnet brought significant improvements. Kuroda said, "It's now faster and cheaper, provides more concise expressions, closer to the style of manga." The ability to process images directly has streamlined their workflow by eliminating intermediate steps. Orange streamlines localization by applying translations to images, eliminating the need for multiple design or translation tools. This simplifies workflows by integrating translation into the design process, reducing intermediary steps and making localization more efficient.

Delivering impact for creators and readers

The impact goes beyond efficiency gains to final product quality. Manga artist Yajima said, "I'm comfortable with Orange's localization process. While AI plays a role, professionals polish the dialogue and capture the characters' nuances. It's great to see the care translators, typesetters, and others put into staying true to the story's original intent and world-building. I'm genuinely happy with how the English versions turn out."

Yajima continues, "As an artist, it's always exciting to see my work shared in other languages. It's a chance to connect with readers I never imagined reaching before. For those of us creating stories in niche or unique genres, having more people experience and enjoy our work is really rewarding. Through Orange's process, I'd love to see my manga translated into not just English but as many languages as possible, so readers worldwide can enjoy it."

Building a global future for manga

Orange aims to use AI to break down language barriers in entertainment. They plan to make manga accessible to global readers while ensuring proper compensation for creators. They also plan to expand their use of Claude beyond manga to anime and other entertainment forms.

Kuroda concludes, "We hope to continue being partners who engage in open communication while exploring how this new technology can enrich us creatively. We aspire to collaborate beyond the boundaries of countries like Japan and the United States, creating global value together."