DeepL launches AI agent, expanding beyond translation to challenge OpenAI, Anthropic, and Microsoft

German startup DeepL is stepping beyond its reputation as a translation specialist and into the crowded AI agent race. On Wednesday, the $2 billion company introduced DeepL Agent, a tool built to handle everyday office tasks and compete directly with enterprise-focused products from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Microsoft.

“DeepL Agent is a general-purpose AI agent designed to autonomously handle a wide range of business tasks through natural language instructions. From building and researching sales account lists, to translating and publishing website content – it’s built to streamline the repetitive, time-consuming work you do every day,” the six-year-old startup said in a statement.

The concept of an “agent” refers to AI that runs in the background, carrying out actions based on user prompts. DeepL’s version is pitched as an assistant for repetitive, time-consuming work across departments, from HR to marketing. Instead of switching between systems and copy-pasting data, DeepL Agent can respond to natural language commands and complete those chores automatically.

DeepL CEO Jarek Kutylowski framed the launch as a natural extension of the company’s translation technology. “We found out that the technology is as capable of helping you whenever you’re doing research or whatever you’re doing,” he told CNBC. “All of those tedious tasks in your office when you have to switch between different systems and take some data from one system, put it into another one, AI, and those autonomous agents, and the DeepL Agent in particular, can help solve so much better.”

DeepL, founded in 2017 and headquartered in Cologne, has built its brand on high-quality translations across 33 languages, including traditional Chinese, which was added just last year as part of its Asia strategy. With more than 100,000 paying business customers—including Deutsche Bahn—the company has been carving out space against Google Translate by emphasizing accuracy and linguistic nuance.

From Translator to Taskmaster: German Startup DeepL Launches AI Agent to Automate Office Tasks

Now, with agents becoming a buzzword in Silicon Valley, DeepL is signaling ambitions far beyond translation. The startup said its agent technology runs on a mix of its own large language models and external ones, mirroring how rivals are approaching enterprise AI. The move positions DeepL in direct competition with Anthropic’s Claude, OpenAI’s GPT-powered assistants, and Microsoft’s Copilot suite.

The timing is striking. Investor appetite for AI remains high—Anthropic, backed by Amazon, just announced fresh funding at a $183 billion valuation. Meanwhile, IPO chatter is heating up across tech, with Klarna and Gemini preparing to test the public markets. Asked whether DeepL might follow, Kutylowski dismissed the idea for now, saying an IPO isn’t on the table in the short term.

DeepL is backed by prominent investors, including Index Ventures and ICONIQ Growth, the fund tied to Mark Zuckerberg’s family office. That support has helped it scale quickly while doubling down on markets like Taiwan and Hong Kong, where its translation tools are already entrenched in business communication. Kutylowski hinted that more Asian languages are on the way, suggesting the company sees long-term growth in the region.

DeepL’s story began as Linguee, an online dictionary project founded by Kutylowski, before pivoting into neural machine translation in 2017. Its translator quickly stood out in blind tests, with professional linguists often preferring its output over competitors. That reputation gave it a strong foundation, but the launch of DeepL Agent signals a more aggressive push: moving from language services into the broader enterprise AI stack.

By entering the agent market, DeepL is betting it can parlay its credibility in translation into a much larger fight—one that puts it up against the most powerful companies in tech.