Google Delays Gemini 3.5 Pro Launch Amid Performance Shortfalls, Report Says

Alphabet's Google has delayed the launch of its flagship artificial intelligence model, Gemini 3.5 Pro, by several months after the technology fell short of internal performance benchmarks, Bloomberg News reported Thursday. The setback caused shares of the tech giant to fall as it navigates an increasingly competitive AI landscape.

Development Setback

The most powerful version of Google's AI was originally scheduled for a June release, a timeline previously announced by CEO Sundar Pichai at the company's I/O developer conference in May. However, the model's capabilities, particularly in coding, did not meet expectations, according to the report, which cited ten current and former employees.

An effort late last month to improve Gemini's performance by updating its training data reportedly failed to produce the desired results. The delay has reportedly caused concern among some Google engineers and researchers as rivals continue to release new, high-performing models.

Market Impact and Competitive Pressure

Following the report, shares of Alphabet (GOOGL) slipped by nearly 3% in trading. The delay underscores the intense pressure on major tech firms to innovate rapidly in the AI sector, where model performance and enterprise-ready features are key differentiators.

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The competitive environment remains fierce. The report comes just a week after rival OpenAI launched its latest model, GPT-5.6. Meanwhile, another key competitor, Anthropic, recently navigated U.S. export controls on its most advanced models, Mythos 5 and Fable 5, citing national security concerns before adding safeguards that allowed for their reinstatement.

Google's Response

A Google spokesperson confirmed to Reuters that the company is actively developing its new models. "We’re currently testing 3.5 Pro, an upgraded Flash model, and other models with partners, and we’re productively engaged with the U.S. government," the spokesperson stated.

The company emphasized its commitment to both speed and efficiency, adding, "We’re shipping quickly across a wide range of models while keeping them highly cost-effective for customers."