Gemini 4 Carbon checkpoint spotted on Arena: faster, better 3D, outputs resemble Opus 5.5
testingcatalog · x · 2026-11-02
Google unveiled Gemini 4 Carbon on October 28 (initially for cyber defenders only), but an updated Carbon checkpoint has already surfaced on Arena served under the "Argon 4" label.
Key points
- Testers report the new checkpoint is "noticeably better and faster," with much longer thinking time.
- Carbon-H is said to be far stronger than earlier Carbon builds at coding, design, and 3D.
- Some outputs look "strangely similar to Opus 5.5," sparking speculation about training data or distillation sources.
- Sundar Pichai previously claimed Carbon ranks #1 on Artificial Analysis v5.0; developer and consumer access is expected later.
Related event: Google Tests New Gemini 4 Carbon Checkpoint as "Argon 4" on Arena(2 posts)→
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