Unexpected language emerges as best for AI prompting
Researchers discovered that AI models respond most accurately to specific language prompts, with English ranking only sixth among 26 tested languages.
A new joint study by the University of Maryland and Microsoft has found that Polish is the most effective language for prompting AI, outperforming 25 others, including English, French, and Chinese.
The researchers tested leading AI models, including OpenAI, Google Gemini, Qwen, Llama, and DeepSeek, by providing identical prompts in 26 languages. Polish achieved an average accuracy of 88 percent, securing first place. English, often seen as the natural choice for AI interaction, came only sixth.
According to the study, Polish proved to be the most precise in issuing commands to AI, despite the fact that far less Polish-language data exists for model training. The Polish Patent Office noted that while humans find the language difficult, AI systems appear to handle it with remarkable ease.
Other high-performing languages included French, Italian, and Spanish, with Chinese ranking among the lowest. The finding challenges the widespread assumption that English dominates AI communication and could reshape future research on multilingual model optimisation.
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