Gemini 3.8 Flash Ships as Google Splits Cyber Into a Gated SKU
Google launched Gemini 3.8 Flash at a $0.75/$3.75 intro price through year-end, plus 3.8 Flash Cyber for trusted defenders via the new Fairwind program. Public Flash stays the workhorse; Cyber-tier tools stay gated to vetted defenders.
Corrected October 14, 2026: Removed the unsupported 'third Flash in six weeks' and 'Critical-tier' framing, the comparison with 3.7 pricing, and an unverified named-partner list.
Google is splitting cyber into a gated SKU rather than putting its cyber-tuned model on the public API.
Google (September 2) published Gemini 3.8 Flash and Gemini 3.8 Flash Cyber. 3.8 Flash keeps intro pricing $0.75 / $3.75 per million tokens through December 31, 2026, then $1.50 / $7.50. Vendor: HLE-Verified 54.9%; DeepSWE v1.1 beats most larger frontier models at Flash cost. 3.8 Flash Cyber is defender-only via Fairwind (CodeMender harness). Fairwind lists 650+ participating partners. Google.org cyber funding now >$100 million; $36 million / 35 U.S. cyber clinics. Chrome Security: Cyber produced 2.6× more correct Chrome patches than the best larger commercial models. Wiz: +7.5–9.7% recall at 2.3–5.2× lower cost.
Analogous to OpenAI Daybreak Red.
Two SKUs#
| SKU | Access | Job |
|---|---|---|
| 3.8 Flash | API, AI Studio, Gemini app / Enterprise | Workhorse coding/agents |
| 3.8 Flash Cyber | Fairwind trusted defenders | Vuln discovery, patching |
Lab + partner (Wiz, Chrome) figures. Artificial Analysis / Arena results for 3.8 were not listed at the time of writing. Open questions: Fairwind vs Daybreak, and whether $0.75 intro holds past New Year.