Echoly
Translates YouTube audio into your language while the video plays.
The problem #
Subtitles make you read instead of watch, and auto-translated ones are often worse than nothing. A talk in a language you do not speak stays closed to you even when the whole internet is one click away.
The approach #
A Chrome extension that taps the page audio, translates it, and speaks it back in near real time. Two tiers: a realtime one measured in hundreds of milliseconds, and a cheaper standard one for anything not live. You bring your own API key, so the cost is yours and the margin is not hidden.
Where it is now #
The extension works and the source is open. Development has been paused since June 2026.
What happens if this works #
Language stops deciding which talks you get to watch. The idea still holds; the timing did not.
Evidence #
- 47 stars, 25 forks on GitHub as of 2026-09-12
- 13 languages supported at the last release, 2026-06-18