Live stream translation, in Chrome
Translate live streams in real time, in your language
Automatic dubbing on YouTube™ skips live streams. DubBuddy translates a stream while it is live.
DubBuddy listens to the stream in your tab and speaks it in your language about 3 seconds behind the speaker, with the original voice underneath. Or read along: each line appears with its translation as it is said.
DubBuddy is a Chrome extension for computers. It does not run on phones or tablets.
How to translate a live stream with DubBuddy
The full setup guide- 1
Add DubBuddy and paste a Gemini key
Once: add the extension to Chrome on your computer and paste a key from Google AI Studio on its welcome page.
- 2
Open the stream with its sound on
Open the stream’s page, let the ads finish, and unmute the player: many sites start a stream muted, and DubBuddy hears only what the tab plays.
- 3
Click the DubBuddy icon and press Start
The side panel opens. Pick your language under “Translate to” and press Start: the dub follows the stream a few seconds behind. With the panel open, the icon or Alt+Shift+D starts at once.
- 4
Another stream, another Start
Opening another stream in the tab ends the session: press Start again there. To read the stream instead, switch the mode to Transcript before Start.
Where we tested it
Tested by hand on 8 November 2026, in Chrome on a Mac, with Transcript only and a translation. Sites change their players; one that is not in this table may work too.
| Site | What played | Result |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube™ Live | What played: A 24-hour English news channel | Result: Works |
| Twitch | What played: An English chat stream, without an account | Result: Works |
| Kick | What played: A Portuguese stream, without an account | Result: Works; the language was detected by itself |
| TikTok LIVE on the web | What played: A Vietnamese gaming stream, without an account | Result: Works on the stream’s own page, with the player’s sound on |
| A TV channel’s own live player | What played: A broadcaster’s English channel | Result: Works |
Not tested, because they need an account or a subscription: Weverse, Facebook and Instagram Live, X, and paid sports services. A player protected against copying (DRM), as paid sports and film services often are, gives DubBuddy no sound.
Twitch, Kick, TikTok and the other names here belong to their owners; DubBuddy is not affiliated with them.
Tips for live streams
- Start after the ads: their sound is sent and billed too.
- A loud stream, music or a crowd? Transcript only can be easier to follow than the dub.
- A session lasts up to 150 minutes; press Start to go on. Google bills by the minute of audio sent: about $2.21 an hour for the dub and about a quarter of that for Transcript only, at its paid-tier prices on 30 October 2026 (Google’s price list ↗).
- A muted dub is still billed; a silent stream sends nothing.
What it can’t do
- Hear a player protected against copying (DRM): it gives no sound to capture.
- Open a members-only stream for you: DubBuddy hears only what your tab plays.
- Keep the lips in step: the dub runs about 3 seconds behind. When people talk fast, read along in Transcript only.
- Run on a phone: Chrome on phones runs no extensions.
Live stream questions
About 3 seconds behind the speaker: DubBuddy waits for enough of each sentence to translate it. The original voice stays underneath, at the level you choose.
Yes. We tested it on a Twitch stream, without an account, on 8 November 2026. Let the ads finish, unmute the player, then click the DubBuddy icon and press Start.
Yes, on any site where the stream plays with sound in a Chrome tab. DubBuddy detects the spoken language by itself; pick yours under “Translate to”. Weverse needs an account and was not part of our test.
The LIVE feed plays muted, and DubBuddy pauses while the tab is silent: nothing is sent or billed. Open the stream’s own page, turn the player’s sound on, then press Start.
DubBuddy charges nothing. Google bills your key by the minute of audio sent: about $2.21 an hour for the dub at its paid-tier prices on 30 October 2026, about a quarter of that for Transcript only. A session lasts up to 150 minutes; press Start to go on.
No. DubBuddy is a Chrome extension for computers, and Chrome on phones runs no extensions.
Translate the next live stream you watch
Add DubBuddy to Chrome, paste a Gemini key, and press Start when the stream begins.
DubBuddy is a Chrome extension for computers. It does not run on phones or tablets.