BUSINESSCompanies · · Source: Google
Google unveils Gemini 4 Carbon – first for cyber defenders only
On October 28, 2026, Google introduced Gemini 4 Carbon, which it calls its strongest model yet. It's built for cybersecurity and long, multi-step coding work – and for now it's only available to selected security teams.
What Carbon does
Google positions Carbon for three areas: finding, validating and fixing security vulnerabilities; long-horizon coding such as root-causing and patching bugs in large codebases; plus web development and scientific tasks.
Google's numbers
- #1 on the Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index v5.0 (score: 59).
- 88.2% on SEC-bench Pro (finding vulnerabilities), 71.0% on CWE-bench (patching).
- 0.0% attack success rate for indirect prompt injection in the Gray Swan test.
These are vendor figures, not independent evaluations.
Who can use it
A selected group of cyber defenders gets access first, followed by other trusted partners through Google's “Fairwind” program. Google is also taking part in the US government's voluntary pre-release testing. There's no date yet for developers, businesses or consumers. API pricing is already set: an introductory $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens, then $4 and $20.
What this means for you
- The strongest AI models are going to defenders first – a new pattern that shows how seriously vendors take the risk of misuse.
- For businesses, AI is becoming a security tool: finding and fixing weaknesses before attackers do.
- Nothing changes in everyday work yet. Carbon isn't generally available.
Luigi's take
What strikes me isn't the benchmark scores but the release order: defenders first, then partners, then everyone else. That's a deliberate choice against “ship to everyone as fast as possible” – and a sign that AI now plays a real role on both sides of cybersecurity.
For executives, this means IT security and AI belong in the same conversation from now on. If you haven't asked your IT provider how they use AI for defence, do it this quarter. Attackers won't wait for the official launch.
Source
This article was researched and written with AI assistance. Responsible: Luigi Lugmayr.
