I sent a voice message in Mandarin. WeChat transcribed it as a recipe for dumplings.
My friend from Russia was learning Chinese. She got lazy and started sending voice messages instead of typing.She thought WeChat's voice-to-text would save her friends from having to listen.
It did not go well.
The first message:
She said: "Wǒ míngtiān qù Běijīng" (I go to Beijing tomorrow)
WeChat transcribed it as: "我明天去被鸡" (I go to get chicken tomorrow)
Her friend replied: "What chicken?"
The second message:
She said: "Wǒ hěn lèi" (I'm very tired)
WeChat transcribed it as: "我很雷" (I'm very thunder)
Her friend sent a lightning bolt emoji.
The third message:
She said a longer sentence about meeting for dinner.
WeChat transcribed it as a full recipe for pork and cabbage dumplings, including ingredients and cooking time.
She has no idea how.
Why voice-to-text fails for foreigners:
WeChat's voice recognition is trained on native Chinese speakers. Foreign accents break it.
Common problems:
• Tones are wrong → completely different words
• Pronunciation is off → gibberish or unrelated phrases
• Speed is too slow or too fast → misses boundaries between words
• Background noise → adds random characters
Tips for using voice messages:
1. Speak slowly and clearly.
Not robot-slow, but enunciate each word.
2. Don't trust the transcription.
Always listen to the actual voice if it's from a non-native speaker.
3. Use voice for natives, text for learners.
If your Chinese isn't fluent, type. It's safer.
4. For important messages, always type.
"I'm at the hospital" should never be sent by voice if the transcription might say "I'm at the restaurant."
5. Pinyin input is your friend.
Type pinyin, select characters. It's slower but accurate.
The exception:
If your Mandarin is actually good (HSK 5+), voice-to-text works fine. The problem is foreign accents, not the system itself.
My Russian friend's new rule: "I now type everything. It takes 5 minutes to write a sentence. But at least my friends know I'm going to Beijing, not buying chicken."
Anyone else had voice-to-text disasters? What's the weirdest thing it transcribed?
Page:
[1]