Hayward Staff Test AI Spanish Translation Ahead of Council Rollout
City Council • HaywardJune 23, 2026
Locunity is an independent informational service and is not an official government page for this commission. All information is sourced from public footage and an analysis of official agendas with the aid of responsible, fact-checked AI. to report an error or omission.
Hayward is preparing to offer real-time Spanish-English translation at City Council meetings. On June 23, 2026, city staff and representatives from the vendor Wordly ran a live technical test of the AI-powered platform. Spanish speech at the podium was translated on screen in real time. The test also exposed a conflict between the tool and the city's public records practices.
- Live test succeeds: Spanish spoken at the podium was captured and translated in real time on chamber and Zoom displays.
- Vendor steers Hayward away from consecutive translation and toward simultaneous, on-screen dual-language text.
- The city's Zoom chat ban, meant to limit public records, disables Wordly's Share button.
- One more internal test is planned before a live council debut. No launch date has been set.
AI Translation Passes Its First Live Test
Why it matters: Real-time translation would let Spanish-speaking residents follow council meetings and take part in them without waiting on interpreters. That is a significant language-access upgrade for a city with a large Spanish-speaking population. It could also shorten meetings.
Where things stand: Staff ran Wordly inside the Zoom webinar setup Hayward uses for council meetings. They limited the platform to English and Spanish (Latin America), which Wordly said speeds recognition. A staff member then spoke Spanish at the podium. The system detected the language and displayed the translation on monitors visible to people in the chamber and on Zoom.
Simultaneous, not consecutive: Staff asked about consecutive interpretation, in which a speaker talks, pauses and waits for the translation. Wordly said the platform's built-in latency makes that approach unworkable.
"It's just not designed to work the way that you're looking for with this particular application," said Chris Gillespie, Wordly representative.
Gillespie suggested a different workflow. After a Spanish speaker finishes, a clerk could scroll back through the Wordly transcript and read the English translation into the official record.
Chris H., Wordly representative, pointed to Monterey County as a model. That county shows Spanish and English on an extra monitor in a split screen, with different font and background colors so each language is visually distinct. He argued that simultaneous interpretation moves meetings along faster. Under the consecutive model, he said, "half the time, half the audience is waiting while speech is being spoken in a language they don't understand."
Brendan, Wordly representative, offered a tip for public comment. He recommended that speakers open with a short introduction in Spanish, which helps the system "warm up" its language detection and reduces lag.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: No votes were taken, and no councilmembers participated. Spanish-speaking residents stand to gain the most. The city clerk's office would take on new tasks, including reading translations into the record and keeping the platform's settings current.
What's next: Staff plan one more internal solo test before using Wordly at a live council meeting. Wordly said additional support hours are available if needed.
Public Records Policy Collides With Translation Tool
Why it matters: The easiest way to give residents a Wordly link runs through Zoom chat. Hayward keeps chat off by design.
Where things stand: During the test, Wordly's Share button failed to appear in Zoom. Gillespie identified the cause: "That's not showing up because you have chat disabled."
The city disables chat on purpose. "And plus that creates a record for the city. So that's why we don't use the chat normally. We don't enable it," said Miriam, Hayward city staff.
The other side: Another staff member also raised concerns about profanity. "Generally, I don't think we want chat on just because that also has to become public record and everything like that," said a Hayward staff member.
Brendan said the last city Wordly worked with had faced a similar problem. "I want to say they enabled chat for the first time," he said. Wordly suggested a workaround: enable chat for panelists only.
Decisions and stakeholder impacts: No decision was made. Staff must weigh easier resident access against new records-retention and moderation burdens before launch.
Minor Items
- QR codes: Staff discussed putting Wordly access QR codes on printed agendas and adding links to Granicus pages and YouTube descriptions. Gillespie said Santa Clara County posted the link on YouTube.
- Glossary fix: In testing, the system rendered "Sunnyvale" as "Sandoval." Wordly said the city should configure the platform's custom glossary.
- Backup plan: If the Zoom integration fails, an iPad connected through an iRig can stay muted in the session and serve as backup. Only one audio source should be active at a time to avoid duplicate translations.
Looking ahead: Watch for a council meeting where Wordly goes live. Also watch for whether Hayward changes its Zoom chat policy to make the rollout work.