VALLETTA, MALTA. Artificial intelligence is beginning to transform the way tourism professionals communicate at major international gatherings. One of the innovations that drew attention during the 26th Global Summit of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), held in Malta from October 7 to 9, 2026, was the LEION Hey2 smart glasses, designed to translate conversations in real time and display subtitles directly within the wearer's field of vision.

Developed by LLVision, a technology company specializing in augmented reality and artificial intelligence, these glasses aim to reduce language barriers without requiring participants to constantly look at a smartphone screen or rely exclusively on traditional interpretation systems. During the event, which brought together more than 1,000 delegates from different countries, including business leaders, government representatives and key figures from the travel and tourism sector, hundreds of devices were used to help attendees follow presentations in different languages.

In an interview with ABC MUNDIAL in Malta, Roy Lou, COO (Chief Operating Officer) of LEION Hey2, explained how the technology works and highlighted the possibility of allowing each attendee to follow the same presentation in their preferred language.

“Today, we are using hundreds of our glasses to support this global summit,” Lou said during the interview. He explained that while speakers address the audience on stage, each participant can select their preferred language and view the corresponding translation through the glasses.

“Everybody can choose their own language and change it to their mother tongue. This way, everyone has their own translation screen to see the language that suits them best,” the executive explained.

More Than 100 Languages and a Lightweight Design

During the conversation, Lou presented the glasses' main features and highlighted their lightweight design. “They are very light and weigh only 49 grams,” he said.

The executive also noted that the product supports translation between more than 100 languages. Asked whether the technology could be used in different countries and linguistic environments, he answered affirmatively, emphasizing its international potential: “All over the world, don't worry about the language. You can wear these glasses and go to any country.”

The technology captures the speaker's voice, processes speech recognition and displays the translated text within the user's field of vision. This allows participants to follow presentations without constantly shifting their attention away from the stage or the person they are speaking with.

According to the manufacturer's published specifications, LEION Hey2 supports more than 100 languages, offers a claimed latency of less than half a second and uses four microphones with noise-reduction technology. Its stated battery life reaches up to eight hours, although actual performance depends on usage conditions and service configuration.

A New Tool for MICE Tourism

The experience in Malta highlights the potential of this technology for MICE tourism—meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions—a segment in which communication among people of different nationalities is essential.

At an international conference, a tool like this can help attendees follow presentations, encourage professional exchanges and make informal conversations and business meetings more accessible. It also creates opportunities for tour operators, destinations, hotels and event organizers seeking to improve the overall participant experience.

The ability for each attendee to choose their own language is particularly relevant. Rather than relying on a single shared translation for the entire audience, each user can access subtitles in the language they feel most comfortable with.

However, the effectiveness of these solutions also depends on speech-recognition accuracy, accents, background noise, connectivity and the language combinations involved. They should be viewed as complementary tools whose performance depends on the specific conditions of each event.

Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming the Conference Experience

The presence of LEION Hey2 at the WTTC Summit reflects a growing trend across the tourism industry: the adoption of technologies designed to make global gatherings more accessible, personalized and efficient.

For destinations and conference organizers, reducing language barriers can help expand networking opportunities and facilitate the participation of professionals from diverse markets.

The interview with Roy Lou provided first-hand insight into the company's vision and the technology's application during one of the tourism industry's major international gatherings. The use of hundreds of glasses during the summit represents a concrete example of AI-assisted translation being implemented at a global event.

The next challenge will be to assess how the technology evolves, what results it delivers in different settings and how it can be integrated with professional interpretation solutions, which remain essential for complex, high-level meetings.