Google expands Gemini 3.5 line with trio of new models — and shares an update on Gemini 3.5 Pro

Back in May, Google released Gemini 3.5 Flash, its smartest speed model at the time. It’s been only about two months since then, but a new shiny AI model is ready to take its place. Google has announced the launch of Gemini 3.6 Flash. Along with 3.6 Flash, the company is also launching 3.5 Flash-Lite and 3.5 Flash Cyber in CodeMender.

Gemini 3.6 Flash: Features and highlights

Gemini 3.6 Flash is billed as Google’s workhorse Flash model, delivering better coding, knowledge work, and multimodal performance than before. However, the biggest highlight appears to be the model’s efficiency. Based on data from the Artificial Analysis Index, Google says 3.6 Flash consumes 17% fewer output tokens than 3.5 Flash. It is also said to take fewer reasoning steps and tool calls to make its way through multi-step workflows.

On top of that, the model will be available at a lower cost than 3.5 Flash. The company has set the pricing at $1.50/1M input tokens and $7.50/1M output tokens.

But it’s not just about efficiency and cost; performance also improves with this new model. According to Google, 3.6 Flash is more precise, delivers fewer unwanted code edits, and reduces execution loops. Computer use has improved from 78.4% to 83% and there’s now a built-in client-side tool via the Gemini API and Gemini Enterprise. As the graphs above show, knowledge work benchmarks also favor the new 3.6 Flash.

Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite: Fastest model in the series

The Gemini Flash series is built specifically for efficiency and speed. Gemini 3.5 Flash-Lite is the new cream of the crop in the 3.5 series for low-latency tasks and high throughput. The latest Flash-Lite model runs at 350 output tokens/s, priced at $0.3/1M input tokens and $2.5/1M output tokens. Outside of speed, it has a few other bragging rights as well.

Google says that 3.5 Flash-Lite offers “significantly better quality than 3.1 Flash-Lite.” It’s also said to significantly outperform the previous model. And 3.5 Flash-Lite doesn’t just outclass its predecessor, Google claims it even outperforms Gemini 3 Flash.

Fixing vulnerabilities with Gemini 3.5 Flash Cyber

Unlike the models mentioned earlier, Gemini 3.5 Flash Cyber is designed for cybersecurity. This model was built on top of 3.5 Flash and tweaked to find and fix vulnerabilities at a lower price per token than larger models. Google says that when 3.5 Flash Cyber is used within CodeMender, the company’s managed code security agent, multiple 3.5 Flash Cyber agents are used to create a single combined report. This model will only be made available to “governments and trusted partners via CodeMender soon as part of a limited-access pilot program.”

Availability

Both Gemini 3.6 Flash and 3.5 Flash-Lite are rolling out today. For everyone, these models will appear in the Gemini app, and you’ll also find 3.5 Flash-Lite in Search. Developers will be able to access these models in the Gemini API via Google AI Studio and Android Studio. Meanwhile, enterprise users can access them through the Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform and Gemini Enterprise app.

In an update, Google adds that Gemini 3.5 Pro is making progress, as it continues to test the model with partners. The company says it plans to roll out 3.5 Pro broadly soon. Additionally, Google says that it has started pre-training the next major model, Gemini 4.