# Gemini 4 Carbon — Google's new frontier model, first for cyber defenders

> Google's Gemini 4 Carbon tops the Artificial Analysis index and sets new security scores, but only cyber defenders get it at launch.

- Org: Google
- Date: 2026-10-28
- Category: model, security
- Source: https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/gemini-models/introducing-gemini-4-carbon/
- Canonical page: https://ai-tldr.dev/releases/google-gemini-4-carbon/

Gemini 4 Carbon is Google's new frontier model for cyber defence and long agentic coding. It ranks #1 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index v5.0 with 59, and goes first to a subset of cyber defenders, not to the public.

## What it is

Gemini 4 Carbon is the second Gemini 4 model, announced on 28 October 2026, two weeks after Gemini 4 Argon. Google calls it its strongest model, with state-of-the-art cybersecurity and long-horizon capabilities for jobs like root-causing and patching bugs across large codebases.

## How it works

On security tests, Carbon scores 88.2% on SEC-bench Pro for finding vulnerabilities, 54.8% on ExploitGym for exploitation and 71.0% on CWE-bench for patching; Google says all three ran without guardrails. Google also reports 0.0% successful cheating on Terminal-Bench 4.0 and 0.0% attack success on the Gray Swan prompt-injection test, against 0.7% for Argon.

## Why it matters

A model that finds and exploits bugs this well helps defenders and attackers alike, so Google is giving security teams a head start before any wide release. For everyone else, the new #1 spot on the Artificial Analysis index raises the bar that OpenAI and Anthropic models are measured against.

## Who it's for

security teams, critical-infrastructure operators, frontier-model watchers

## Quick facts

- Maker: Google DeepMind
- Announced: 28 October 2026
- Availability: Subset of cyber defenders, then Fairwind Program partners
- Public API: Not yet; no date given
- WebDev Arena: #4, 1769 Elo (+89)
- Intro price: $2 in / $10 out per 1M tokens

## FAQ

### Can developers use Gemini 4 Carbon on the Gemini API?

Not at launch. Google says Gemini 4 Carbon goes first to a subset of cyber defenders and then, step by step, to more trusted partners through its Fairwind Program. Google plans to bring Gemini 4 Carbon to developers, businesses and consumers after gathering feedback and improving guardrails, but it did not give a date.

### How much will Gemini 4 Carbon cost?

Google lists an introductory price for Gemini 4 Carbon of $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens, with cached input tokens 95% off the input price. After the introductory period the price rises to $4 per million input tokens and $20 per million output tokens, the same schedule Google used for Gemini 4 Argon.

### How does Gemini 4 Carbon compare with Gemini 4 Argon?

Google reports that Gemini 4 Carbon has more than 2x the secure-code success rate of Gemini 4 Argon on internal benchmarks, about half as many unsupported claims, and almost 80% fewer high-severity misalignment alerts in internal coding environments. On the Gray Swan indirect prompt-injection benchmark, Carbon has 0.0% attack success against Argon's 0.7%.

### Is Gemini 4 Carbon the top model on the Artificial Analysis index?

Yes. Google says Gemini 4 Carbon ranks #1 on version 5.0 of the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index with a score of 59. Version 5.0 is the rebuilt index that Artificial Analysis published on 27 October 2026, where private test sets carry 60% of the weight. On WebDev Arena, Gemini 4 Carbon sits at #4 with 1769 Elo.

## Links

- [Google Announcement](https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/gemini-models/introducing-gemini-4-carbon/)
- [Safety Report](https://storage.googleapis.com/deepmind-media/gemini/gemini_4_safety_report.pdf)
- [Fairwind Program](https://deepmind.google/fairwind-program/)
- [HN Discussion](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50276792)