New DeepL research finds that nearly 70% of US enterprises face daily unexpected operational challenges due to language barriers

An overwhelming 95% of US enterprise leaders believe Language AI tools will be essential for global operations within the next 5 years

NEW YORK, May 8, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly 70% of US enterprises face unexpected operational challenges due to language barriers on a daily basis and almost two-thirds (61%) of leaders admit they have underestimated the impact of these barriers on their business. This is according to new research from DeepL, a leading global Language AI company, which surveyed over 1,000 business decision makers at US companies with 500+ employees, all of which either have plans to expand globally or already have a global presence, to assess the impact of language barriers on business operations and explore how companies are addressing these challenges with innovation solutions, including artificial intelligence.

DeepL's survey reveals that overlooking language barriers has significant consequences for US enterprises, leading to delays in global expansion, damage to brand reputation and more. However, despite the significant impact of these barriers, the survey also found that businesses are rapidly adopting innovative AI technologies to address them – Language AI is cited as the most popular solution for addressing language barriers today, with 59% of enterprises currently utilizing these tools within their organization. A significant 96% of enterprises say they are considering using AI tools to mitigate language barriers either within the next year (75%) or in over a year from now (21%), and 95% believe that AI-driven language tools will be essential for global operations within the next five years.

"Many US companies assume that English is enough for business communication, but that's a risky mindset – the reality is that only 18% of the world speaks English, and even within the US, over 60 million people speak a language other than English at home," said Jarek Kutylowski, CEO and Founder, DeepL. "Our latest research underscores the huge impact that underestimating language barriers can have on US enterprises: 69% of executives report that these barriers lead to unforeseen difficulties in daily operations, with a tangible negative impact on their expansion goals and bottom line. As the world becomes more connected, the scope and impact of these issues will only intensify."

"With more than half (59%) of enterprises already using Language AI tools to address these barriers, and 96% planning to adopt them in the next few years, failing to embrace these technologies now means risking falling behind. Seamless multilingual communication is now a business imperative for any enterprise operating internationally or aiming to expand its global footprint," continued Kutylowski.

Key research findings:

• Language barriers pose a significant – and often overlooked – challenge for US enterprises. 62% of surveyed leaders encounter language-related challenges at least once a week, and 79% face them at least once a month. Alarmingly, 61% of executives admit to underestimating the impact of these barriers, a figure that rises to 67% among larger companies with 1,000-1,499 employees.
• These barriers have severe consequences on business growth, collaboration and overall operational costs. A striking 61% of enterprise leaders admit that language-related challenges have forced them to delay or limit global expansion plans, with 62% anticipating that the barriers will grow as their businesses scale.
  • Furthermore, 69% of leaders report unexpected challenges in daily operations, particularly in IT (54%), customer service (39%) and internal collaboration (26%). The negative effects of unaddressed language barriers also extend beyond operational inefficiencies, leading to increased costs (38%), damaged brand reputation (36%), and compliance issues (31%).
  • The financial impact of these challenges is significant. Nearly 40% of respondents report annual costs between $500,000 and $2 million.
• Language AI is quickly becoming the go-to solution for enterprises tackling language and communication challenges, with adoption rapidly increasing. Among the businesses surveyed, Language AI solutions, such as those offered by DeepL, are the most popular choice for overcoming language barriers (59%), followed by hiring bilingual employees (54%), using traditional software/tools (51%) and investing in employee language training (48%). Approximately 96% of respondents are considering using AI tools to mitigate language barriers, either within the next year (75%) or in over a year from now (21%), and 95% believe that AI-driven language tools will be essential for global operations within the next five years.
• Growing demand for Language AI coincides with broader AI enterprise adoption trends. 93% of enterprises reportedly now use AI more broadly across various functions, of which 67% report adoption across multiple areas of their business.
  • Enterprise leaders also show a clear preference for specialized AI tools over general-purpose ones – respondents were almost twice as likely to prefer specialized AI tools than general purpose AI tools (52% vs 27%). The top factors driving this adoption are quality (65%), time savings (57%) and ease of integration (57%).

DeepL has become the preferred specialized Language AI platform for businesses worldwide, with a rapidly expanding customer network of over 200,000 businesses and governments including industry leaders like Softbank, Mazda, Harvard Business Publishing, The Ifo Institute, Panasonic Connect and more. To learn more, visit https://www.deepl.com/en/whydeepl.

Methodology
This report is based on a March 2025 survey conducted by Censuswide, on behalf of DeepL, of over 1,000 business decision makers from companies with at least 500 employees, based in the US. These companies either have a global presence, are aiming to expand globally, or engage with international stakeholders or partners in markets outside the US.

About DeepL
DeepL is on a mission to break down language barriers for businesses everywhere. Over 200,000 businesses and governments and millions of individuals across 228 global markets trust DeepL's Language AI platform for human-like translation in both written and spoken formats, as well as natural, improved writing. Designed with enterprise security in mind, companies around the world leverage DeepL's AI solutions that are specifically tuned for language to transform business communications, expand markets and improve productivity. Founded in 2017 by CEO Jaroslaw (Jarek) Kutylowski, DeepL today has over 1,000 passionate employees and is supported by world-renowned investors including Benchmark, IVP and Index Ventures.

SOURCE DeepL