Google launches Gemini 3.6 Flash, 3.5 Flash-Lite, and 3.5 Flash Cyber

Google released three new Gemini models: 3.6 Flash (the new workhorse model, cutting output token usage by 17% versus 3.5 Flash), 3.5 Flash-Lite for high-volume cost-sensitive workloads, and 3.5 Flash Cyber, a security-focused model for vulnerability detection restricted to governments and trusted partners.

Why it matters

Output pricing on 3.6 Flash dropped from $9.00 to $7.50 per million tokens while coding benchmark scores rose (DeepSWE: 49% vs 37% for 3.5 Flash) — a real efficiency and cost jump for anyone running Gemini at volume, not just a benchmark bump.

Who should care

Developers building on the Gemini API who care about cost-per-token and coding/agentic performance

What you can do

Swap your Gemini API calls to 3.6 Flash and compare cost and quality against your current model — available now via Google AI Studio and the Gemini API.