6 billion downloads later, VLC still delivers
Matt V
January 11, 2025
AI TECH
The VLC media player, a popular open-source video platform, introduced a cutting-edge feature at CES 2025: AI-powered automatic subtitling and translation.
This technology will work offline, producing subtitles and translations in real-time without relying on cloud services.
Jean-Baptiste Kempf, president of VLC's parent organisation, VideoLAN, showcased how the new feature supports over 100 languages, with plans to expand further.
Unlike previous solutions using plugins like OpenAI’s Whisper, this new capability is directly integrated into VLC, running entirely on users' devices.
Although there’s no official release date yet, the feature’s debut highlights VideoLAN’s focus on innovation.
In brief:
VLC’s AI subtitles and translations operate offline, supporting over 100 languages.
The feature is built directly into the VLC app, removing the need for external services.
VideoLAN has surpassed 6 billion downloads, with active user numbers continuing to grow.
Old-school video player, new tricks.
In other news, VideoLAN celebrated a major milestone this week—6 billion downloads.
Kempf noted that the number of active users is increasing, even as streaming services become more dominant.
With CES 2025 still ongoing, the AI subtitling feature remains a highlight of the event.
When your favourite video player turns into a translation powerhouse.