Google says its new Gemini 3.8 Flash model ‘works harder’ but might cost more

Google has released Gemini 3.8 Flash, a new AI model succeeding Gemini 3.7 Flash. The company states it 'works harder' by performing more reasoning steps on complex tasks and 'calling tools iteratively.' While it shares the same introductory per-token pricing as its predecessor, Google warns that higher token usage, especially at higher effort levels, could increase overall costs. Early analysis suggests the model is cost-effective for its intelligence level, offering significant improvements in software engineering and autonomous AI agent tasks, outperforming competitors on specific benchmarks. It also includes safeguards against misuse in sensitive domains. Alongside the general release, Google launched Gemini 3.8 Flash Cyber, available to governments and trusted partners through the new Fairwind Program, which includes tools for finding and fixing vulnerabilities.

(Source：The Verge)