IT·Science News

Google I/O: Gemini 3.5 Flash, a 24/7 agent and a cheaper $100 Ultra plan

Google opened its I/O developer conference at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California, on Tuesday 19 May, with nearly every launch built around its Gemini models, TechCabal reports. Gemini 3.5 Flash becomes the default model in the Gemini app and in Search’s AI Mode; Google says it is four times faster than comparable frontier models at less than half the cost. Gemini 3.5 Pro is in internal testing and expected in June.

Other launches included Gemini Omni, which takes text, images, audio and video and produces video; Gemini Spark, an agent that runs around the clock on Google Cloud and connects to Gmail and Docs; and a redesigned search box that accepts images, files, videos and Chrome tabs. Google, Samsung and Qualcomm showed Android XR glasses with Gentle Monster and Warby Parker designs; audio glasses arrive in the autumn, with no price yet. Subscriptions were reshuffled: a new $100-a-month AI Ultra tier, and the top Ultra plan cut from $250 to $200.

How each outlet framed it

• TechCabal — the full list, plus the African angle: Africa is not on the first launch list for the glasses, and whether features such as Personal Intelligence reach Nigeria is still unclear.
• Jang — speed and trust: Gemini 3.5 Flash claimed to be 4x faster than rivals, Google processing over three trillion tokens a day, and new SynthID and C2PA checks to spot AI-made images.

What we don't know yet: what the glasses will cost, and when the paid agent features will leave the US.