Talking Taxi-Book app: helps you find your way in China’s metropolis’

Overcoming language barriers

It is every traveller’s nightmare: trying to get to your location in China’s big cities by taxi, but you don´t speak Mandarin. Now you will get there and back much easier thanks to a great new iPhone app: Taxi-Book, developed in China by a German-Dutch partnership. “Available for China’s key cities, and more to come”, says entrepreneur Peter Kuppens in Chengdu.

You are in a taxi in Xi’an, unsure if the driver really understands that you need to go to the Chinese Development Bank. You told him in clear English that the address is No 2, 1st Gaoxin Road. It did not seem far from the hotel, but you are in that taxi for almost thirty minutes. Almost late for a meeting. In the meantime, the taxi driver is sweating profusely, while driving around. “Where is this consulate-general of South-Korea that this businessman wants to go to…” With the new Taxi-Book app (for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, Android to be launched later) you will never be in this situation anymore. The recently launched app is a handy electronic guide to China’s key locations. The app knows hundreds of key locations in the city and your position, it helps you find your destination and: speaks Mandarin for you.

Aloud in Mandarin

Just look up where you need to go in the English-language list, press the taxicard button and show the name of the institution and address to the driver in Mandarin. Tap the address again and the app reads it aloud. Tap the dialogue button for a list of typical questions about the meter, the fare, the distance etcetera. It is actually possible to communicate with the driver, verbally. Tap a question in English, like “does this taxi have airco?” Tap the question and it will be read aloud to the driver. Hand over the phone to the driver, who can choose from multiple answers in Mandarin characters. Make him tap the right answer and it will read in plain English to you: “Yes, but unfortunately it’s broken”.

First on paper, now as an app

“We used to give our clients a taxi-book on paper, with every important location like banks and hotels in the city”, Peter Kuppens (40) of the Chengdu-based Taxi-Book company says. But then Peter, who’s actual business is real estate, found out about the very promising language technology of Yocoy in Berlin, Germany, a spin-off of the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence. “Their claim is that they develop software to overcome barriers between the most common barriers. I visited Berlin and we closed the deal that lead to the Taxi-Book app.”

Ten cities, more to come

Apps are now available for ten cities, more to come, says Peter who has ten people working in Chengdu to find and develop the content for new city launches of Taxi-Book. The Taxi-Book app features an interactive map and a GPS feature that can help you to locate your current position and find nearby cafes, restaurants or bars. A 12,000-word dictionary is also included to help fill in the gaps should the user find themselves in more unpredictable situations. Peter Kuppens: “The benefits are not only for visitors and expats. Local taxi drivers also love it, I noticed. It prevents misunderstandings and a lot of sweat and stress.”

What do you think of the Taxi-Book app? Have you ever been lost in translation? Do you think this app would´ve helped you?

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