Google has slipped AI agents straight into its search bar, unveiling a faster, cheaper Gemini 3.5 model that aims to outpace rivals Anthropic and OpenAI among South African enterprises and everyday users alike. The rollout, announced at the I/O developer conference, pairs new “agents” that can book flights, monitor ticket stock and draft reports in real time, signalling the biggest overhaul of Google Search in a generation.
The move comes as Alphabet edges close to Nvidia for the title of world’s most valuable company, a position bolstered by its relentless push to weave AI into every consumer product. Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, argued that “when people use our AI‑powered features in Search, they use Search more,” a claim backed by internal data showing Gemini’s user base has more than doubled in the past year.
Google AI upgrades reshape the South African market
The new Gemini 3.5 Flash model, tailored for coding and automation, launches today, while Gemini 3.5 Pro is slated for release next month. Both versions promise the same performance as rival frontier models at roughly one‑third of the cost, according to Google’s briefing. For South African businesses, the cost‑saving narrative is reinforced by a fresh tiered pricing structure for the AI Ultra subscription.
| Plan | Monthly Fee (USD) | Token Limit | Target Users |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ultra Standard | $200 (down from $250) | 2 billion | Heavy‑usage enterprises |
| Ultra Developer | $100 | 1 billion | Developers & work‑related users |
| Ultra Enterprise | Custom pricing | Unlimited | Global corporations |
The table shows how Google’s revised pricing aims to make high‑capacity AI more accessible for midsize South African firms, potentially shaving millions off annual token budgets.
Google claims that large corporations could save over $1 billion a year by switching to its models, a figure that resonates with local IT directors grappling with ballooning cloud costs. By positioning Gemini as a cost‑effective alternative, Google hopes to lock in enterprise contracts before OpenAI and Anthropic complete their anticipated IPOs.
In parallel, Google introduced Gemini Spark, an agent that pulls data from Chrome, Gmail and YouTube to generate reports, manage calendars and even create visual explanations for scientific queries. The feature now powers 2.5 billion monthly users of AI Overviews in Search and about 1 billion in AI Mode, according to Pichai.
“We’re entering the next chapter of Google Search, where incredible AI features aren’t just in search, Google Search is AI search, through and through,” said Liz Reid, vice‑president of the Search team. The integration of AI‑generated visuals and code snippets directly into search results marks a clear departure from the text‑only paradigm that dominated the web for decades.
Gemini Omni pushes video AI ahead
Another headline from I O was Gemini Omni, a video model designed to evolve into a “world model” capable of generating any output from any input. DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis described it as the next step toward simulating the physical world, starting with video and eventually expanding to audio, text and 3‑D environments. The technology follows the viral success of the Nano Banana image generator, which attracted 13 million first‑time users in four days last September.
Google also hinted at a revived smart‑glasses initiative, set to launch in the Southern Hemisphere spring, in partnership with Samsung, Warby Parker and Gentle Monster. While details remain sparse, the collaboration suggests an ambition to blend AI‑enhanced wearables with everyday productivity tools—a prospect that could intrigue South African tech adopters eager for cutting‑edge hardware.
Across the board, Google’s emphasis on lower‑cost, high‑capacity AI models aims to cement its dominance in both consumer search and enterprise AI services. By leveraging its massive user base—Gemini now serves 900 million monthly users, more than double the figure from a year ago—Google is betting that seamless AI integration will keep South African businesses and developers firmly within its ecosystem.