MotaWord

The image shows the MotaWord logo

MotaWord is a cloud-based, collaborative translation and language operations platform headquartered in New York City, established in January 2014 by Evren Ay and Oytun Tez. It offers translation, localization, and proofreading products and services with a focus on speed, accuracy, and cost-effectiveness.

History

MotaWord was founded in 2014 with the mission to make high-quality translation accessible at scale and at a lower cost. Evren Ay and Oytun Tez, the co-founders, envisioned a collaborative translation platform that would allow multiple translators to work together in real-time, maximizing both speed and accuracy. The company has since grown and had a chance to work with worldwide known companies such as Trading212, Iron Mountain, Sharp, Nielsen and others.

MotaWord began as an ambitious project rooted in the need to streamline and modernize translation workflows. When founder Evren Ay first embarked on this journey, the traditional processes in the industry were slow, cumbersome, and highly reliant on manual communication. At the time, Evren faced challenges managing the workflow at Link Translations, a company he led that specialized in translation and interpretation services for Fortune 1000 companies and the U.S. government.

The early prototype of what would become MotaWord was known as “L!NK,” a simple system that aimed to automate client interactions, such as obtaining quotes and allowing translators to work online. However, L!NK did not progress beyond the design phase and was soon rebranded as MotaWord.

Evren Ay is a former Executive Director of The Federation of Turkish American Associations in the US and has organized the “Turkish American Day Parade” on Madison Avenue in NYC for 5 consecutive years with tens of thousands of participants. Evren studied Management at Evren at Sorbonne University and Baruch College of New York. He is a member of the Rotary Club in New York and is a board member of the American Red Cross of Greater NYC, he is also a Young Society Leader. He resides in New York and Paris.

Oytun Tez majored in Translation Studies, with a thesis on machine translation. He worked on many internationalization and localization projects for the largest global language translation and content management company as well as the translation projects of direct clients. Coming from a software background, he began engineering in the translation industry to improve regular workflows and eventually co-founded MotaWord, a pioneer in collaborative translation.

Collaborative translation

The translation industry has historically been slower to innovate compared to other sectors. Although there have been significant technical advancements, such as CAT tools and machine translation, these solutions often added complexity to workflows. MotaWord’s early focus on reducing these pain points positioned it as a leader in simplifying translation management. The platform’s introduction of a truly collaborative approach — where multiple translators could work on a project simultaneously — was a game changer. This system allows multiple linguists to contribute to a project concurrently, with real-time collaboration and oversight. As a result, MotaWord ensures faster, higher-quality translations compared to traditional models. The collaborative process also includes a built-in proofreader who reviews and refines the work, ensuring consistent and accurate output.

The platform combines a global network of over 25,000 professional linguists to deliver high-quality, human translations in 110+ languages, catering to enterprises, small businesses, and freelancers across a range of industries.

Services

MotaWord offers a range of services designed to meet the diverse needs of businesses operating in international markets:

• General Translation: General and specialized translations across multiple sectors, including legal, medical, marketing, and technical fields.
• Website and Application Translation and Localization: Specialized translation services for websites, WordPress, and apps.
• Certified Translation: Each translation project is reviewed by a second, qualified linguist to ensure quality and consistency.
• Academic Evaluation: Comprehensive evaluations for educational and professional purposes.

Products

MW offers a robust suite of tools and features designed to meet diverse translation and localization needs. Its web suite provides intuitive dashboards for streamlined project management and ordering, complemented by an extensive APIand CLI for seamless integration into existing workflows. MW supports a wide array of integrations and automations to enhance productivity, while the Active Suite delivers real-time solutions such as translation, chat translation, and machine translation. With AI-driven features like proofreading, post-editing, and real-time translation, MW ensures high-quality outputs. These capabilities empower businesses to communicate effectively and efficiently across languages, simplifying complex processes and elevating user experiences.

Online Presence

MotaWord operates entirely through its website, www.motaword.com, where clients can submit projects and access translation services. The platform is widely used by companies seeking agile solutions for international communication and localization needs.