Startups & Business News

Crunchyroll Faces Backlash After AI-Generated Subtitles Exposed

Aiko Tan
July 9, 2025

Crunchyroll, a major player in anime streaming, recently found itself in hot water after fans discovered AI-generated errors in the subtitles of the new series Necronomico and the Cosmic Horror Show. At around 19:12 in the German subtitles, viewers spotted an obvious mistake: the phrase “ChatGPT said:” appeared directly in the dialog. This glaring error left no doubt that artificial intelligence was involved in the subtitle creation process.

Why Are Fans Upset?

Anime fans are known for their high standards when it comes to translation accuracy and subtitle quality. The presence of AI-generated content—especially when it results in such blatant errors—has fueled frustration. One user summed up the sentiment:

“This is not acceptable. How can we be expected to pay for a service that clearly doesn’t care about the quality of its products?”

This isn’t the first time Crunchyroll has faced criticism for poor subtitles. In late 2023, the company had to pull an episode of The Yuzuki Family’s Four Sons due to outrageously bad translations, including random punctuation and incorrect character names—classic signs of machine translation gone wrong.

The Bigger Picture: AI in Anime Subtitling

The use of AI for subtitles is becoming more common as streaming platforms race to deliver content in multiple languages quickly. Crunchyroll’s CEO previously acknowledged that AI is being tested for subtitling and closed captioning, with the goal of speeding up releases for global audiences. However, the recent subtitle blunder has reignited concerns about automation sacrificing quality.

Crunchyroll’s Changing Stance on AI

Crunchyroll’s leadership has sent mixed signals about its AI strategy. CEO Rahul Purini initially stated that AI was a focus for improving subtitle workflows, aiming for faster, multi-language releases. But in a more recent interview, he claimed the company is “not considering AI in the creative process”, especially regarding voice acting and storytelling. Despite this, the latest subtitle incident suggests that AI is still very much part of the process, at least behind the scenes.

What Does This Mean for the Future of Streaming?

This controversy highlights a key challenge for streaming services: balancing speed and scale with quality and authenticity. As fans become more adept at spotting AI-generated errors, platforms like Crunchyroll will need to rethink how they implement automation in content localization. The backlash also underscores the importance of human oversight in areas where cultural nuance and accuracy are critical.