# Gemini 4 Carbon vs Argon: Carbon scores 59 but is cyber-only

> Carbon leads Argon 59 to 50 on Artificial Analysis, but only some cyber defenders can use it. Argon is the model developers can call today.

URL: https://claudegpt.si/news/gemini-4-carbon-vs-argon  
Published: 2026-10-28T22:51:31.035Z  
Author: ClaudeGPT Si Newsroom  
Section: Reviews  
Topics: Google, Gemini, Google DeepMind, Language models, Cybersecurity  
Publisher: ClaudeGPT Si

## Key takeaways

- Google announced Gemini 4 Carbon on October 28, 2026, and it is limited to a subset of cyber defenders for now, with no general release date.
- Artificial Analysis scores Carbon at 59, Argon at 50 and Claude Opus 5.5 at 58 on its Intelligence Index.
- Both models list introductory pricing of $2 input and $10 output per million tokens, but only Argon appears on the Gemini API pricing page.

Gemini 4 Carbon vs Argon comes down to one fact: you can use Argon today, and Carbon is limited to a subset of cyber defenders. Google [announced Carbon on October 28, 2026](https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/gemini-models/introducing-gemini-4-carbon/) as its strongest model, and Argon, which [launched on October 13](https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/gemini-models/introducing-gemini-4-argon), is the one developers and subscribers can actually call.

On Artificial Analysis, Carbon scores 59 and Argon 50. That is a real gap, but it only matters to people who can get Carbon, and for now few can.

## Gemini 4 Carbon vs Argon at a glance

All figures are as of October 28, 2026. Google's pricing page lists Argon but not Carbon, so Carbon's price comes from its announcement.

| | Gemini 4 Carbon | Gemini 4 Argon |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Announced | October 28, 2026 | October 13, 2026 |
| Access | A subset of cyber defenders this week, then other trusted partners through the Fairwind Program | Gemini API, AI Studio, Gemini for business, Antigravity, and the Gemini app and AI Mode for Ultra and Pro subscribers |
| General availability | No date. Google says it will bring Carbon to developers, businesses and consumers "as soon as possible" | Available now |
| Free tier | Not applicable, not publicly available | None. The pricing page says Argon is not on the free tier |
| Price per million tokens (introductory) | $2 input, $10 output | $2 input, $10 output, through November 30, 2026 |
| Price afterward | $4 input, $20 output. Google gives no end date for the introductory price | $4 input, $20 output from December 1, 2026 |
| Cached input | 95% off the input price | 95% off |
| Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index | 59 | 50 |
| Context window | Not stated by Google. Artificial Analysis lists 1M | Google describes a 1M combined input and output token limit. Artificial Analysis lists 1M |

## Who can use Carbon right now

Almost nobody. Google says it is making Carbon available to a subset of cyber defenders starting the week of October 28. Access will widen gradually to other trusted partners through the Fairwind Program. Google is also taking part in the U.S. government's voluntary pre-release model testing.

There is no general release date. The model has no entry on the Gemini API pricing page, no model ID there, and no consumer rollout. If you are asking whether Gemini 4 Carbon is out, the answer is that it is out for a restricted group and not for the public. Our [report on the Carbon launch](https://claudegpt.si/news/gemini-4-carbon-cyber-defenders) covers the cyber angle in more detail.

Argon also has a cyber track. Through the same Fairwind Program, defenders get a version of Argon without cyber guardrails, on a rolling basis.

## What Carbon does better, by Google's numbers

Google calls Carbon's cybersecurity and long-horizon work state of the art. Its announcement reports these results, evaluated without guardrails:

- SEC-bench Pro, which tests finding vulnerabilities: 88.2%.
- ExploitGym, which tests exploitation: 54.8%, which Google calls a new state of the art.
- CWE-bench, which tests patching: 71.0%.
- WebDev Arena: 1768 Elo, ranked fourth.

Google does not publish Argon's scores on these tests, so the announcement does not let you compare the two models on them directly. It does give a few direct comparisons from its own testing: more than double the success rate on secure code generation, and an attack success rate on the Gray Swan prompt injection benchmark that fell from 0.7% for Argon to 0.0% for Carbon. These are internal results, and nobody outside Google has checked them yet.

## The independent number

[Artificial Analysis](https://artificialanalysis.ai/leaderboards/models) is the one outside source we could check. Its Intelligence Index shows Carbon at 59, Argon at 50 and Claude Opus 5.5 at 58. The page does not state an index version. Google's announcement calls the index v5.0 and says Carbon ranks first.

Artificial Analysis also lists a cost per task: $7.76 for Carbon, $7.68 for Argon and $10.04 for Opus 5.5. That is close to a tie between the two Gemini models even though the quality gap is nine points. How Argon compares with Anthropic's model is in our [Argon vs Opus 5.5 comparison](https://claudegpt.si/news/gemini-4-argon-vs-opus-5-5).

## Which one to pick

If you are building today, Argon is the only choice. It is paid only, and the introductory price doubles on December 1, 2026. Our guide on [whether Argon is free](https://claudegpt.si/news/is-gemini-4-argon-free) covers the plans.

If you work in security and your organization is a candidate for the Fairwind Program, ask for Carbon access. Everyone else should wait for Google to name a general release date and put Carbon on its pricing page. Watch for that page, because the introductory price in the announcement is not yet backed by a listing developers can use.

This comparison is based on Google's announcements, the Gemini API pricing page and Artificial Analysis's published results. We did not test either model.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is Gemini 4 Carbon out?

Only for a restricted group. Google announced it on October 28, 2026 and is giving it to a subset of cyber defenders, with other trusted partners to follow through the Fairwind Program. It is not generally available.

### What is the Gemini 4 Carbon release date?

Google has not given one. It says it will bring Carbon to developers, businesses and consumers as soon as possible.

### How much does Gemini 4 Carbon cost?

Google's announcement lists $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens at first, rising to $4 and $20 later, with no end date given for the introductory price. Carbon is not on the Gemini API pricing page as of October 28, 2026.

### Is there a Gemini 4 Carbon API?

Not publicly. The Gemini API pricing page lists Gemini 4 Argon but has no entry or model ID for Carbon as of October 28, 2026.

## Sources

- [Introducing Gemini 4 Carbon](https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/gemini-models/introducing-gemini-4-carbon/), Google
- [Introducing Gemini 4 Argon](https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/models-and-research/gemini-models/introducing-gemini-4-argon), Google
- [Gemini API pricing](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/pricing), Google
- [Model leaderboard](https://artificialanalysis.ai/leaderboards/models), Artificial Analysis