What Textshuttle (now Supertext) does

Supertext is a Zurich-based language AI and professional services company that emerged from the April 2024 merger of Supertext (a copywriting and translation agency founded in 2005) and TextShuttle (a University of Zurich AI spin-off founded in 2016 by current CEO Samuel Läubli). The company combines an in-house developed, translation-specific large language model with a network of 3,000+ vetted freelance linguists under a 'fused translation' model in which every professionally verified translation feeds back into customized per-client models. Its product suite includes a consumer-grade AI translator covering 28 languages (with 113 languages available via professional services), a self-serve Translation API, a Translation MCP server for ChatGPT/Copilot/Claude, Microsoft Office add-ins, and full-service specialized translation, copywriting, editing, and plain language services. The platform is 100% hosted in Switzerland, certified to ISO 27001, 9001, 17100, and 18587, and positioned around GDPR and Swiss FADP compliance for regulated buyers.

The company serves 1,500+ customers across Europe with a hybrid go-to-market: a product-led free AI translator and tiered subscriptions (Basic, Advanced, Enterprise) capture long-tail demand, while a direct enterprise sales motion targets banks (Swiss Life, Migros Bank, Raiffeisen Schweiz), insurers (AXA, Generali), public sector and regulated corporates (SBB, Swisscom, Dormakaba, Ottobock), and global brands (Puma, Swatch, Karl Lagerfeld, OBI, Galaxus, Motel One, Frontify). Revenue is generated through subscription tiers, pay-as-you-go Verification add-ons, API seats, and project-based professional services. Ownership is founder-controlled (Fabian Dieziger and Samuel Läubli as co-owners), with no disclosed external funding rounds and a C-suite that includes a CTO, COO, CRO, CMO, and Head of AI Research. The business model is asset-light on the language professional side (freelance network scales elastically) and high-touch on the AI/engineering side (~100 in-house specialists), with active academic research partnerships with ETH Zurich, University of Zurich, and University of Edinburgh.

Name

Textshuttle (now Supertext)

Legal name

Supertext AG

Website

https://supertext.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Supertext is a Zurich-based AI translation and professional language services provider serving 1,500+ European enterprises and regulated buyers with proprietary Swiss-hosted LLMs, customized per-client models, on-demand human verification, and Translation API and MCP integrations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

AI Translation Services

NAICS

Translation and Interpretation Services (541930), Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Communications Services, Nec (4899)

akta.pro primary industry

Machine Translation & Multilingual NLP (HDAAADAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Multilingual/Translation Communication Apps (BPAMACAJ)

Keywords

• AI translation services
• Machine translation platform
• Professional translation services
• Translation API solutions
• Multilingual localization software

Headquarters

HQ city

Zurich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. AI Translation Subscriptions: Subscription-based access to the AI translator with tiered plans (Basic, Advanced, Enterprise). Subscribers get varying levels of character limits, language access, API usage, MCP access, team features, and SSO capabilities. Renews automatically on a monthly or annual basis.
2. Professional Verification (Add-on): On-demand human review of AI translations as a paid add-on. Priced per project with displayed rates (e.g., average LinkedIn post in French from CHF 5.70; A4 page around CHF 19). Delivered within minutes by professional linguists from the 3,000+ freelancer network.
3. Free AI Translation (Freemium): Free AI translation tool accessible without login on supertext.com for unlimited basic use. Generates leads for paid tiers and captures top-of-funnel demand. Free users can optionally purchase professional verification.
4. Translation API Access: API subscription for programmatic access to AI translation in 28 languages, integrated into customer systems (CMS, PIM, TMS, custom software). Billed based on subscription tier with API rate limits.
5. Professional Translation Services: Full-service translation by professional linguists for specialized, creative, or high-stakes content. Includes specialized translation, copywriting, editing, and plain language services. ISO 17100 and ISO 18587 certified.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Supertext provides an adaptive, sovereign AI-based translation platform that combines in-house developed LLM translation technology with on-demand professional human linguist verification. The platform serves 28 languages via AI and 113+ languages via professional services, with RESTful API and MCP integrations for enterprise workflows, 100% Swiss-hosted infrastructure, and customizable per-client language models.

Product overview

Supertext is an all-in-one language AI platform combining AI-powered translation technology with human professional expertise. The core offering is the Supertext AI Translator, an adaptive sovereign AI that learns from human experts and can be customized to corporate language. This integrates with the Translation API and Translation MCP for enterprise integrations, while the Verification add-on provides on-demand professional human review by 3,000+ linguists within minutes. Professional services (Specialised Translation, Copywriting & Content, Editing, Plain Language) extend the offering to 100+ languages for full-service language needs. Key features include Team Glossaries, Style Guides, and the Supertext Cockpit dashboard. The platform is 100% hosted in Switzerland with ISO 27001, 9001, 17100, and 18587 certifications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Supertext AI Translator On-demand AI translation tool powered by in-house LLM technology that delivers measurably better results than DeepL in 3 out of 4 language combinations. Offers free automated translation in 28 languages with optional professional human verification available within minutes, serving both individual users via the website and enterprise customers via subscription tiers.
• Professional Verification On-demand professional human translator review service connecting users with 3,000+ experienced linguists to verify AI translations for accuracy. Delivers verified translations within minutes (8 minutes for a LinkedIn post, 15 minutes for an A4 page) with pricing from CHF 5.70 per project, available as a paid add-on to the AI translator and API.
• Translation API RESTful HTTP interface enabling integration of Supertext AI translation into existing systems such as CMS, PIM, or TMS. Supports 28 languages with flexible addition of glossaries and style guides per request, plus access to professional Verification on demand, billed via subscription tiers.
• Translation MCP Model Context Protocol server enabling enterprise-grade translation integration into AI assistants (ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude). Features company-specific AI models with terminology and style guides, plus optional Verification by on-call linguists within the same AI workflow.
• Specialised Translation ISO-certified professional translation services by experienced human translators covering 100+ languages, handling documents, websites, apps, and multimedia campaigns with expert quality assurance from InDesign to Word.
• Copywriting & Content Creative copywriting and content creation services by professional writers in multiple languages, producing expressive, impactful copy tailored to the client's tone of voice.
• Editing Professional editing and proofreading services for multilingual text quality assurance.
• Plain Language Service making specialist texts easy to understand for broader audiences, reducing support requests and building trust.
• Customized AI Translation (Enterprise) Tailored enterprise AI translation solution with language models individually trained on corporate language, style guidelines, and terminology. Models adapt in real-time with every professionally verified translation to ensure consistent corporate voice across all company communications, with options for SSO, team management, on-premises hosting, and dedicated support.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90% more ready-to-publish output compared to baseline without Supertext
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

AI capability3 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Raiffeisen SchweizcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 July 2026Supertext partnered with Raiffeisen Schweiz to modernize their multilingual translation processes using a centralized platform combining AI-powered translation, professional language services, and existing language knowledge. This is described as an important milestone for Supertext, highlighting growing demand for Swiss AI solutions meeting high standards.
• Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 June 2022Collaboration between Textshuttle (now Supertext) and Romansh media company RTR to develop the first-ever automated Romansh translation system. Used state-of-the-art neural networks trained on 250,000 parallel segments. Project phases: Romansh-to-German (completed spring 2021) and German-to-Romansh (completed spring 2022). RTR uses the system for editorial pre-translation, with texts then reviewed and lightly edited by humans.
• ETH ZurichcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive collaboration on machine translation research. Joint publications including 'Turning English-centric LLMs into polyglots: how much multilingualism is needed?' and 'State-of-the-art generalisation research in NLP: a taxonomy and review'. ETH Zurich partnership brings academic rigor to Supertext's AI model development.
• University of ZurichcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing academic partnership through co-founder Samuel Läubli's PhD and ongoing research collaboration. Joint publications including research on genderfair translation, NLP generalisation, and machine translation meta-evaluation. University of Zurich faculty (including Rico Sennrich) collaborated on genderfair AI translation research published at ACL 2023.
• University of EdinburghminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic collaboration on multilingual LLM research, contributing to publications on making English-centric LLMs multilingual.
• Nine Internet Solutions AGcoreOthersServer housing provider for Supertext's data centre operations. Nine Internet Solutions AG provides premises for hosting servers including access protection, racks, electricity, and internet connection in Zurich. No access to the machines or data stored on them — Supertext administers and maintains servers independently.
• Microsoft AzurecoreOthersMicrosoft Ireland Operations Ltd provides Microsoft Azure cloud infrastructure for hosting supertext.com (frontend and parts of the backend). Personal data processed via Azure is based on what clients translate via the platform.

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Lionbridge: Global language-services incumbent with machine translation, post-editing, and enterprise localization at massive scale. Competes with Supertext's professional services arm for large multinational translation RFPs but lacks a focused sovereign-AI positioning.
• Welocalize: US/global enterprise language services provider with significant AI translation and content-localization operations. Competes with Supertext's enterprise segment for multinational clients, particularly where US data residency or broader language coverage is required.
• TransPerfect: World's largest privately held language-services company, providing translation, interpretation, and AI-augmented localization to global enterprises. Direct competitor for large enterprise translation RFPs where Supertext pitches against a much larger global incumbent.
• RWS Holdings: UK-listed language services and intellectual-property company offering translation, localization, and AI-enhanced language technology. Comparable to Supertext on the regulated-industry and enterprise side, with broader IP services that differentiate its portfolio.

Direct peers

• Lengoo: Berlin-based AI translation platform combining custom neural machine translation models with human post-editing for enterprise customers. Operates in the same European mid-market and enterprise segment as Supertext, with a comparable 'AI + human review' value proposition.
• Pangeanic: Spain-based AI translation company offering custom neural MT, anonymization, and professional language services to enterprise and public-sector clients in Europe. Competes with Supertext for regulated-industry translation RFPs and emphasizes EU data residency.
• DeepL: Germany-based AI translation company offering DeepL Translator and DeepL Write, and the closest direct competitor to Supertext's AI translator and API. Supertext's marketing explicitly benchmarks against DeepL ('3 of 4 languages better than DeepL'), positioning the two as direct rivals for European enterprise translation contracts.
• LanguageWire: Danish enterprise language services platform that has invested heavily in AI translation workflows and TMS integration. Comparable to Supertext as a European-headquartered LSP combining AI translation, professional linguist networks, and enterprise platform integrations.

Emerging players

• Reverso: Translation and language-learning platform offering neural machine translation and corporate solutions. Comparable to Supertext's PLG free-tier AI translator and SMB/individual verification offering, with overlap on European language pairs.
• Unbabel: Portugal-based AI + human translation platform focused on customer-service and enterprise content translation. Overlaps with Supertext on the AI-augmented human verification model and competes in European enterprise translation deals, particularly in customer support use cases.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/supertext
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/textshuttle

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Textshuttle (now Supertext)