Gemini 4 Carbon looks close to a wider rollout. We picked up new public billing-catalogue entries this morning, covering both Vertex AI and the Gemini API, and I’m watching today closely. Google hasn’t confirmed a public launch date in the announcement we checked. 1 2
Logan Kilpatrick’s one-word “Gemini” post this morning adds to that feeling, although it names neither Carbon nor a release date. The billing entries are the more specific part of the story. 4
The distinction matters because Carbon was already announced on 28 October. That first rollout went to selected cyber defenders, with more trusted partners following through Fairwind. What we’re waiting for now is wider access for developers and everyday users. 3
Our retained Vertex AI alert shows 90 published billing SKUs. Its global online text entries list $4 input, $20 output and $0.20 cache reads per million billed units. Batch and flex entries are listed at half those rates.
| Mode | Input | Output | Cache reads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online | $4 | $20 | $0.20 |
| Batch | $2 | $10 | $0.10 |
| Flex | $2 | $10 | $0.10 |
Those online figures line up with the later standard rates Google described in October. Its announcement also promised an introductory $2 input and $10 output price per million tokens. The billing alert doesn’t establish whether that introductory offer will apply when wider access opens, so I’d keep the catalogue figures and launch pricing separate for now.
The Gemini API entry is interesting in its own right: that alert lists another 45 billing SKUs. Seeing both surfaces prepared is why I think a wider rollout is close.
I’ve already enjoyed the early Arena Carbon clips in our demo library, and Hydrogen’s updated seaplane is another one I keep coming back to. A wider release would let us put an exact public Carbon version through our current creation tests. After Fable 5.2, I’m particularly keen to see how it does.
Sources & references
- Lumina: Carbon in Google Cloud’s public billing catalogue ↗
10 November 2026. Our report and retained alerts list 90 Vertex AI and 45 Gemini API billing SKUs. Catalogue entries do not confirm that public access is live.
- Lumina: watching Carbon’s wider rollout ↗
10 November 2026. Same-day timing and the hoped-for Hydrogen follow-up are editorial expectations; the post does not establish public release.
- Google: Gemini 4 Carbon, our next frontier model ↗
28 October 2026. Initial access for selected cyber defenders and trusted Fairwind partners; broader access promised without a fixed date. Introductory pricing differs from the later standard rate.
- Logan Kilpatrick: Gemini teaser ↗
10 November 2026. The one-word Gemini post does not name Carbon or give a release date.
