The feature, which uses Google Voice technology to automatically process and generate closed captions, was originally designed for YouTube clips. Due to its successful implementation, Google now allows video providers and general users to apply for machine transcriptions on their own videos. A video requested for transcription is put in a queue on YouTube where the captions are generated. The completed video has the benefit of also being able to translate the captions on-the-fly into other languages.
Google has acknowledged that there is one significant issue at the moment, and that is the time it takes to generate the auto-captions. Currently the captions can take up to a day to process, which Google hopes to be able to reduce in the future.
Further information on Google auto captions can be found on the CNET News website.
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