Google rolls out Gemini 4 Carbon to the public, previews agent swarm
Google is releasing Gemini 4 Carbon to paying developers and Ultra subscribers, The Verge reports. Launch pricing is $2 for input and $10 for output per million tokens each, until the end of November.
If you build agents or coding tools, Carbon is a new model to test against Argon and rivals. The launch price is temporary, so budget for the increase when you compare costs.
Google began a general rollout of Gemini 4 Carbon on Nov. 10, according to The Verge. Google calls it its strongest model so far. It also previewed a "swarm" feature for agents.
What happened
Google first gave Carbon to a small group of cybersecurity defenders about two weeks ago. Now it is open to paying developers, enterprises and Google AI Ultra subscribers.
Google says Carbon goes further than Argon, its other frontier model, which launched last month. Google still expects Argon to be the better pick for most software engineering and knowledge work. It describes Carbon as built for tasks that test the limits of a model, including long coding jobs with many steps and science research that is open-ended.
Key details
- Developer access: Paying developers and enterprises can use Carbon through Google AI Studio (the Gemini API) and through Gemini for business.
- Consumer access: Google AI Ultra subscribers get it in the Gemini app, AI Mode in Search and Antigravity.
- Lower tiers: The Verge says it is unclear when, or if, lower-tier or free users will get Carbon.
- Price: The introductory rate is $2 for every million input tokens and $10 for every million output tokens.
- Price comparison: The Verge puts that at about a fifth of OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra and a quarter of Anthropic's Fable 5.2.
- Price change: Costs double when the introductory period ends at the end of November.
- Swarm preview: Antigravity, Google's agentic development platform, will let users turn one prompt into a coordinated team of agents.
- Benchmarks: Google's cited results suggest Carbon is among the most powerful models on the market across most metrics, behind Fable 5.2, per The Verge.
Why it matters
The Verge notes that per-token prices do not decide total cost. Models can use different numbers of tokens for the same task. Run your own workload before you switch.
The Verge also points out that companies can cherry-pick benchmark results. Treat Google's numbers as the company's claims until independent tests appear.
The swarm feature is a preview, so expect it to change. Teams building multi-agent workflows may want to try it in Antigravity.
FAQ
What is Gemini 4 Carbon? It is Google's latest frontier model. Google says it is built for hard, long-running tasks such as demanding coding and scientific research.
How much does Gemini 4 Carbon cost? The introductory rate is $2 for each million input tokens and $10 for each million output tokens. According to The Verge, those costs double at the end of November.
Should I use Carbon or Argon? Google says Argon will likely stay the ideal choice for most software engineering and knowledge work. It positions Carbon for the hardest tasks.
Checked claims
| Claim | Status | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Google is rolling out Gemini 4 Carbon to the general public after an earlier release to a select group of cybersecurity defenders two weeks ago. | confirmed | Google is rolling out its latest AI model, Gemini 4 Carbon, to the general public after releasing it to a select group of “cybersecurity defenders” two weeks ago. |
| Google says Argon will likely remain the best choice for most software engineering and knowledge work. | confirmed | Argon will likely remain “the ideal choice for the majority of software engineering and knowledge work,” |
| Google is previewing a swarm feature on Antigravity that turns one prompt into a team of agents. | confirmed | turn a single prompt “into a coordinated team of agents.” |
| Carbon launches at an introductory price of $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens. | confirmed | The model is launching with an introductory price of $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens |
| Google's cited benchmarks suggest Carbon is among the most powerful models across most metrics, behind Fable 5.2. | confirmed | suggest the model is one of the most powerful on the market across most metrics, behind Fable 5.2. |
| It is unclear when or if lower-tier or free users will get Carbon. | confirmed | It is not clear when — or if — Carbon will be available to lower tier subscribers or free users. |
Question for readersIf you build with agents, which tasks would you hand to a swarm of agents first, and what would you want to check before trusting it?
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