Google I/O 2026 unveils agentic Gemini and biggest Search overhaul in

Google announced the launch of Gemini 3.5 Flash, its fastest‑running model, and the first Search agents on the opening day of I/O 2026, marking what CEO Sundar Pichai called the “agentic Gemini era” [1]. The new model, now generally available through the Gemini app, AI Mode in Search and the Gemini API, outperforms Gemini 3.1 Pro on demanding coding benchmarks and runs about four times faster than competing frontier models [1].

Pichai highlighted that the Gemini app has surged to more than 900 million monthly active users, up from 400 million a year earlier, while daily requests have grown roughly sevenfold and the model APIs now process around 19 billion tokens per minute [1]. Business Insider added that global AI token consumption has hit 3.2 quadrillion per month—a seven‑fold increase year‑over‑year—underscoring the rapid adoption of Google’s AI services [2]. Capital spending is slated at $180‑190 billion this year, a steep rise from $31 billion in 2022, much of it earmarked for next‑generation TPU chips [1].

The centerpiece of the Search revamp is a new box that accepts text, images, files, videos and Chrome tabs simultaneously, with AI reasoning applied across all inputs [1]. AI Overviews now reach over 2.5 billion monthly users, and AI Mode, powered by Gemini 3.5 Flash, has passed the 1 billion‑user mark [1]. Search agents will monitor topics 24/7 and deliver synthesized updates, rolling out this summer to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers [1]. Alongside, Google introduced Gemini Spark, a 24/7 personal agent that can act on a user’s behalf, initially limited to trusted testers and a US beta for AI Ultra subscribers [1].

Developers also see an expanded Antigravity 2.0 platform, a unified CLI for orchestrating multiple agents, and Managed Agents that provision remote Linux environments with a single API call [1]. The company unveiled Gemini Omni, a model that generates video from any input and embeds an imperceptible SynthID watermark, now available to AI Plus, Pro and Ultra subscribers [1].

The real test will be whether these agentic features can deliver value without becoming intrusive, especially as many of the most ambitious tools remain confined to beta programs or paid tiers. As Google pushes AI deeper into Search, shopping and productivity, the industry will watch how users and regulators respond to agents that act across inboxes, browsers and commerce platforms.