What happened
In his first media appearance as DeepMind chief, Koray Kavukcuoglu told The Information that Gemini 4 is in its refinement stage and Google aims to launch it "much earlier" than the end of the year, starting with an early post-training output.
Why it matters
The launch would end Google's stretch without a new flagship AI model, and Kavukcuoglu said the company "took a little bit of a step back" to focus on faster, less powerful Flash models instead.
What to watch
The timing hinges on that "early post-training output" actually shipping, and Kavukcuoglu told The Information it is "a certainty that we are always gonna be at the frontier."
WHO IT HITSEnterprise buyers and developers deciding which flagship AI model to build on now have a signal that Google's next one may arrive sooner than expected, though no date is set. The direct effect lands on teams that delayed switching while Gemini 4 was pending.
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Google's last flagship AI model was the Gemini 3 series in November 2025. Since then, OpenAI's GPT-6 and Anthropic's Mythos series models have launched, both outperforming Gemini 3 and giving those rivals a sizable lead against Google. Google CEO Sundar Pichai said at the I/O event in May that a major Gemini 3.5 Pro update would arrive in June to help bridge the gap, but it never shipped.
That context sits behind Kavukcuoglu's comments. He took over DeepMind's top leadership after former AI head Demis Hassabis stepped down in August, having said "great progress" was being made on Gemini 4. Kavukcuoglu's framing — a step back to prioritize Flash models, then a return with Gemini 4 — is the company's explanation for the gap. Whether the promised early post-training output arrives on that "much earlier" timeline is likely to determine whether Google is seen as back on a consistent release cadence.
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