Global by Design

AI and globalization: A WEGG webinar

John Yunker — Wed, 17 Dec 2025 16:08:23 +0000

I was happy to be re-join Women Entrepreneurs Grow Global for a discussion about AI and content globalization and how we’re in the “calm before the storm.” Watch here

An introduction to CJK fonts

John Yunker — Sun, 31 Aug 2025 14:37:46 +0000

The font studio Typotheque has released a new collection of CJK (Chinese Japanese Korean) fonts. And in doing so they also provided a wonderful overview of the challenges of designing ...

Google Translate in Japan

John Yunker — Sun, 31 Aug 2025 14:37:18 +0000

It’s far from perfect but did better than I expected.

Spambook

John Yunker — Mon, 28 Jul 2025 16:35:38 +0000

Why does Facebook run an ad that so clearly mimics its user interface to trick people. What does this say about a company that does this and how it views ...

Are you making web globalization rookie mistakes?

John Yunker — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 21:27:52 +0000

I recently contributed an article to Multilingual Magazine about some of the most common rookies mistakes I’ve seen over the years. These mistakes are easy to avoid — assuming you’re ...

Understanding China’s “Locknet” Monster

John Yunker — Sat, 05 Jul 2025 14:09:43 +0000

The internet was built to be global. But that hasn’t stopped a number of countries from filtering or outright blocking the internet along their borders. China is the most notable ...

The translation delta between AI and humans is shrinking

John Yunker — Fri, 09 May 2025 14:11:56 +0000

I recently sat in on a webinar sponsored by Localise on AI and localization. It was very interesting and you can check it out here. I wanted to share a ...

Deglobalization & AI: The calm before the storm

John Yunker — Tue, 29 Apr 2025 19:45:37 +0000

While reviewing websites for the 2025 Web Globalization Report Card I was struck by two things: Combined, I believe we are in the midst of the calm before the storm. ...

Dr. Simi comes to the US — the right way

John Yunker — Sun, 06 Apr 2025 15:00:28 +0000

Who is Dr. Simi? I was asking myself that recently and found out here. Dr. Simi is the mascot of Farmacías Similares, the world’s second-largest pharmacy chain. It has over ...

The top 25 websites from the 2025 Web Globalization Report Card

John Yunker — Mon, 31 Mar 2025 13:39:36 +0000

This is the 21st year of the Web Globalization Report Card. The more things change, the more things stay the same. Such as Wikipedia emerging on top, with support for ...

Happy Year of the Snake

John Yunker — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 16:21:21 +0000

This week the dragon gives way to the snake. And, with it, a number of global brands eager to make the most of lunar new year celebrations. Let’s begin with ...

Global expansion means waving goodbye to flags

John Yunker — Wed, 15 Jan 2025 14:52:29 +0000

I read that global remittance startup LemFi received new funding to accelerate its global growth. Notes the TechCrunch article: Since its launch in 2020, LemFi has undergone rapid growth by ...

2025 Web Globalization Report Card is underway

John Yunker — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 17:16:42 +0000

For those of you wondering (and thanks to those who’ve already reached out) the next Report Card is in production. If your company is already included (or you want it ...

Five web globalization best practices that have stood the test of time

John Yunker — Sun, 01 Sep 2024 23:52:44 +0000

NOTE: The following is the beginning of an article I published with Multilingual Magazine recently. You can read the full article at the link below (free registration required). Twenty years ...

Is Apple about to prioritize localization and expand its linguistic reach?

John Yunker — Wed, 07 Aug 2024 14:00:13 +0000

Apple’s recent developer newsletter caught my eye because, for once, localization was featured at the top: Apple is providing free training sessions focused on Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan ...

Will Google retake the lead as the world’s most multilingual website?

John Yunker — Fri, 02 Aug 2024 13:48:05 +0000

What’s the world’s most multilingual website? It’s not Facebook. Not Google. Not even Wikipedia. It’s the website of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, at just over 1,000 languages. But Google has been ...

Adobe’s redesigned global gateway overlay

John Yunker — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 13:47:37 +0000

Adobe pioneered the use of geolocation and localized overlays to improve the global user experience. As shown here, a visitor to the Adobe.com home page from Japan was greeted with ...

Internet irony

John Yunker — Mon, 15 Apr 2024 15:39:50 +0000

Came across this web form during my Web Globalization Report Card research. When is an input field both optional and required? Here’s when. Thought you’d enjoy… PS: Have you tested ...

The inherent flaw of the translation icon

John Yunker — Mon, 08 Apr 2024 14:52:03 +0000

There is no internationally accepted definition of what a “translation” icon should look like. But here’s the icon websites tend to use: You see it many places these days — ...

Language is a feature (to be promoted)

John Yunker — Sat, 30 Mar 2024 13:55:47 +0000

One of the takeaways from the Web Globalization Best Practices & Emerging Trends report is that language is a feature, every bit as important as many other features. After all, ...