In a deal that closed on March 1, 2025, Israeli language service providers (LSPs) BlueLion and GATS merged and debuted a new, joint company, TransNarrative. Advisor Benny Orr facilitated the merger.
BlueLion, founded in 2012, was headed by CEO Omer Shani and serves tech giants such as Nayax, Cybeready, and Samsung. GATS specializes in homeland security and international relations, with clients including US law firms and the Israeli Ministry of Defense. The LSP is also one of the few companies authorized to bid for Israeli government translation contracts.
GATS CEO Yaniv Berman told Slator that the companies became acquainted at industry conferences in Israel about eight years ago, leading to collaboration on dozens of translation projects in a number of languages.
“Now we are taking it to the next level,” Berman was quoted as saying in an official press release.
TransNarrative aims to stay “as lean as possible,” Berman told Slator, balancing a small number of full-time employees with a network of over 300 translators and partner LSPs. The plan for 2025 calls for building a project management department that makes use of AI and automation.
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As far as specific technology, GATS has used SmartCAT extensively, while BlueLion has historically used memoQ. Moving forward, TransNarrative plans to use memoQ as its primary CAT tool while integrating more AI-driven functionalities, specifically tools that help streamline processes related to project and sales management.
Berman explained that, based on positive experiences working together on past translation projects, GATS and BlueLion believe that joining forces will provide clients “more professional and efficient service to clients both domestically in Israel and on a global scale.”
In particular, Berman added that TransNarrative will look to partner with other LSPs in verticals ranging from agritech and automotive solutions to cybersecurity and software.
“Though Israel is a small country, it presents a huge potential due to its global force as a tech leader,” Berman said.