How to translate TikTok and Instagram lives
Idols go live on TikTok and Instagram with no captions at all, and those streams disappear when they end. Echo captions them while they are running, in a floating window you keep above the video.
Answers, before you ask.
Can I translate a TikTok LIVE in real time on iPhone?
Yes. Echo's Audio mode captures the TikTok app's audio through iOS Screen Broadcast and shows Korean-to-English or Korean-to-Chinese captions in a floating overlay.
What about Instagram Live comments in Korean?
Use Screen mode, which translates on-screen text rather than audio, and read the comments as they scroll.
The three-minute setup
- 1
Audio mode, Korean → your language
Audio mode captures another app's sound through iOS Screen Broadcast. Set Korean as the source and English, 繁體中文 or 简体中文 as the target.
- 2
Start the broadcast before you open the app
Confirm Apple's Screen Broadcast prompt in Echo, then switch to TikTok or Instagram.
- 3
Pin the picture-in-picture overlay
Vertical video fills the screen, so drag the caption window over the comment area rather than the face.
- 4
Scroll back afterwards
Translation history is saved locally on your device, which matters for streams that vanish when they end.
Comments and on-screen text
For Korean comments, gift banners and on-screen captions, switch to Screen mode — it translates the text already on your display instead of the audio. Many fans run Audio mode for the idol and check comments in Screen mode afterwards.
What Echo will not do
- It does not record or re-upload streams — captions are for you, on your device.
- It does not bypass DRM or app restrictions; some protected audio cannot be captured.
- It cannot caption audio playing on another phone unless that sound reaches your microphone (use Around Me for that).