Recently, I've been considering changing the cloud service provider of my cell phone, so I'm cleaning up my photo albums to reduce the cost of migration and to say "goodbye to the past" and "not to be burdened by memories". I found some screenshots left when I read the English version of The Prince in 2017. I can't exactly remember the reason for cutting off those sentences, whether because they are philosophical to learn or as long and difficult sentences in English to analyze. But to this day, I find that I still can't read them smoothly, and even if I can get used to the inverted virtual voice, I don't understand it coherently, so I also tried some translation tools to see if that translation works better.

Here, I compared 5 translation tools:

1. Google Translation AI
2. Microsoft Azure Translator
3. Amazon Translate
4. DeepL API
5. OpenAI (Chat GPT)

Let's see how the translation works.

This is a paragraph from "Chapter IV: Why the Kingdom of Darius, Conquered by Alexander, Did Not, on Alexander's Death, Rebel Against His Successors":

…they are not easily corrupted, or if corrupted can render little assistance, being unable, as I have already explained, to carry the people with them. Whoever, therefore, attacks the Turk must reckon on finding a united people, and must trust rather to his own strength than to divisions on the other side. But were his adversary once overcome and defeated in the field, so that he could not repair his armies, no cause for anxiety would remain, except in the family of the Prince; which being extirpated, there would be none else to fear; for since all beside are without credit with the people, the invader, as before his victory he had nothing to hope from them, So after it has nothing to dread.

This is the version translated by DeepL:

他们不容易被腐蚀，或者即使被腐蚀也不能提供什么帮助，因为正如我已经解释过的那样，他们无法带着人民走。因此，无论谁进攻土耳其，都必须指望找到一个团结的人民，而且必须相信自己的力量，而不是相信对方的分裂。但是，如果他的对手一旦在战场上被击败，以至于他无法修复他的军队，那么除了王子的家庭之外，就不会再有焦虑的理由了；王子的家庭被消灭了，也就没有什么可担心的了；因为既然旁边的人在人民面前都没有信用，那么入侵者在胜利之前就没有什么可指望的，在胜利之后也就没有什么可害怕的。

I also tried the translation of Google, and it is word for word the same as the translation of DeepL (I won't post it here), probably because there is a mature translation of this book.

The translation of ChatGPT (GPT3.5) feels a little creative, but there are some mistakes in the translation, such as "must reckon on finding a united people":

他们不容易被腐败，即使被腐败也几乎没有帮助，因为他们无法像我已经解释过的那样带领人民。因此，任何攻击土耳其人的人都必须考虑到会遇到团结的人民，必须更多地信任自己的力量，而不是依赖对方的分裂。但是，如果他的对手一旦在战场上被击败，以至于无法修复自己的军队，那么就没有什么理由担心了，除非是在王子家族中。一旦王子家族被消灭，就没有其他人需要担心了，因为所有其他人都没有人民的信任，入侵者在取得胜利之前对他们没有任何希望，在胜利之后也没有什么可担心的了。

This is the version translated by Microsoft Azure :

他们不容易被腐蚀，或者如果腐败，也提供很少的帮助，正如我已经解释的那样，无法将人民带走。因此，无论谁攻击土耳其人，都必须考虑找到一个团结的民族，并且必须相信自己的力量，而不是另一边的分裂。但是，如果他的对手一旦在战场上被击败并被击败，以至于他无法修复他的军队，那么除了王子的家人之外，就不会有任何焦虑的理由;被消灭了，就没有别的可怕的了;因为既然在旁边所有人都没有人民信誉，侵略者，就像他胜利之前一样，他对他们没有任何希望，所以在它之后没有什么可害怕的。

We can see that there are some areas of improvement, such as the word change of "被腐蚀" and "腐败", but there are also some problematic areas, such as "were his adversary once There are also some problems, such as "were his adversary once overcome and defeated in the field" is translated as "once defeated and defeated in the battlefield", which is a repeated word. It is said that Microsoft and OpenAI are cooperating, so is this seemingly free translation component also from GPT's model?

The translation of Amazon Translate, which feels unnatural in too many places:

它们不容易被腐败，或者如果腐蚀几乎无法提供任何帮助，正如我已经解释的那样，它们无法带人随身携带。因此，无论谁攻击土耳其人，都必须考虑找到一个团结的民族，并且必须相信自己的力量，而不是对方的分歧。但是，如果他的对手曾经在战场上被战胜和击败，使他无法修复军队，那么除了亲王家族之外，就不会有焦虑的理由了；王子家族被消灭了，就没有其他人值得害怕了；因为除了人民之外，其他所有人都没有功劳了，侵略者，就像他获胜之前一样，他对他们没有什么可怕的，所以在他们身上没什么好害怕的。

So, looking at the translation of this paragraph alone, my ranking of the translation tool "English to Chinese" is as follows:

DeepL = Google > Microsoft Azure > ChatGPT > AWS

If you compare the prices of translations, the most expensive one is ChatGPT, followed by DeepL, and the cheapest one is Azure.

At the same time, my company also compared the effect of "English to Spanish", probably the best is DeepL, followed by Azure, Google and OpenAI in the middle, the worst is AWS, probably AWS really rely on the family bucket bundle to make a fortune. :)

In this way, the most cost-effective is actually Microsoft Azure.

The following continues to select some of my previous excerpts, using DeepL for analysis.

In Chapter VIII: Of Those Who By Their Crimes Come to Be Princes:

Hence we may learn the lesson that on seizing a state, the usurper should make haste to inflict what injuries he must, at a stroke, that he may not have to renew them daily, but be enabled by their discontinuance to reassure men's minds, and afterwards win them over by benefits. Whosoever, either through timidity or from following bad counsels, adopts a Contrary course, must keep the sword always drawn, and can put no trust in his subjects, who suffering from continued and constantly renewed severities, will never yield him their confidence. Injuries, therefore, should be inflicted all at once, that their ill savour being less lasting may the less offend; whereas, benefits should be conferred little by little, that so they may be more fully relished.

DeepL翻译：

因此，我们可以吸取这样的教训：篡夺者在夺取一个国家时，应该赶紧把他必须施加的伤害，一蹴而就，这样他就不必每天重新施加伤害，而是能够通过停止施加伤害来安抚人们的心灵，并在之后用利益来赢得他们。不管是谁，不管是由于胆怯还是由于遵循错误的建议，采取了相反的做法，都必须始终拔出剑来，而且不能信任他的臣民，因为他们遭受了持续不断的伤害，永远不会对他产生信任。因此，伤害应该是一次性的，这样它们的恶臭就不会那么持久，也就不会冒犯人；而利益应该是一点一点地给予，这样它们就会被更充分地享受。

In fact, this paragraph shows why the book is so controversial, because it asserts that "if necessary, a monarch should use immoral means to achieve goals (such as honor and survival)," and explains exactly how to do so.

In Chapter XII: How Many Different Kinds of Soldiers There Are, and of Mercenaries:

But I desire to demonstrate still more clearly the untoward character of these forces. Captains of mercenaries are either able men or they are not. If they are, you cannot trust them, since they will always seek their own aggrandizement, either by overthrowing you who are their master, or by the overthrow of others contrary to your desire. On the other hand, if your captain be not an able man the chances are you will be ruined. And if it be said that whoever has arms in his hands will act in the same way whether he be a mercenary or no, I answer that when arms have to be employed by a Prince or a Republic …

DeepL:

但我想更清楚地证明这些部队的不正当性质。雇佣军的队长要么是有能力的人，要么不是。如果他们是，你就不能信任他们，因为他们总是在寻求自己的扩张，要么推翻你这个主人，要么推翻与你愿望相反的其他人。另一方面，如果你的船长不是一个能干的人，你有可能会被毁掉。如果有人说，谁手里有武器，不管他是不是雇佣兵，都会以同样的方式行事，我的回答是，当一个王子或共和国必须使用武器时......

In the same Chapter：

The Milanese, in like manner, when Duke Filippo died, took Francesco Sforza into their pay to conduct the war against the Venetians. But he, after defeating the enemy at Caravaggio, combined with them to overthrow the Milanese, his masters. His father too while in the pay of Giovanna, Queen of Naples, suddenly left her without troops, obliging her, in order to save her kingdom, to throw herself into the arms of the King of Aragon.

And if it be said that in times past the Venetians and the Florentines have extended their dominions by means of these arms, and that their captains have served them faithfully, without seeking to make themselves their masters,I answer that in this respect the Florentines have been fortunate because among those …

DeepL:

米兰人也以同样的方式，在菲利普公爵去世后，将弗朗西斯科-斯福尔扎收为己用，对威尼斯人发动战争。但他在卡拉瓦乔击败敌人后，与他们联合起来推翻了米兰人，他的主人。他的父亲在受雇于那不勒斯女王乔凡娜时，突然让她失去了军队，迫使她为了拯救她的王国，投向阿拉贡国王的怀抱。

如果有人说，在过去，威尼斯人和佛罗伦萨人通过这些武器扩大了他们的领地，他们的队长忠实地为他们服务，而不寻求使自己成为他们的主人，我回答说，在这方面，佛罗伦萨人是幸运的，因为在那些......

In Chapter XIX: That a Prince Should Seek to Escape Contempt and Hatred:

Whence it followed that those Emperors who had not inherited or won for themselves such authority as enabled them to keep both people and soldiers in check, were always ruined. The most of them, and those especially who came to the Empire new and without experience, seeing the difficulty of dealing with these conflicting humours, set themselves to satisfy the soldiers, and made little account of offending the people. And for them this was a necessary course to take; for as Princes cannot escape being hated by some, they should, in the first place, endeavour not to be hated by a class; failing in which, they must do all they can to escape the hatred of that class which is the stronger. Wherefore those Emperors who, by reason of their newness, stood in need of extraordinary support, sided with …

DeepL:

因此，那些没有继承或为自己赢得这种权力，使他们能够同时控制人民和士兵的皇帝总是被毁掉。他们中的大多数人，特别是那些刚到帝国的、没有经验的人，看到了处理这些矛盾心理的困难，就把自己定位于满足士兵，而很少考虑得罪人民。对他们来说，这也是必须采取的措施；因为王子们无法逃避被某些人憎恨的命运，所以他们首先应该努力不被某个阶层所憎恨；如果做不到这一点，他们就应该尽一切努力来逃避那个更强大的阶层的憎恨。因此，那些因其新生而需要特别支持的皇帝，就站在了......的一边……

Conclusion:

1. The bad translation of AWS and the good translation of Microsoft are something I didn't expect; the other thing is about OpenAI, which actually has a lot of possibilities because of its API, and there will be different models and parameters to choose from than ChatGPT.

2. The book "The Princess" is small and not too complicated, but to read it, you need not only a solid knowledge of English (many omissions and inversions), but also a better understanding of Western history; but its thinking is very clear, and it is very suitable for ruling a country or governing a company.