● Covered by 2 sources · 3 reportsMedium impact2 neutral1 positive
Google DeepMind Introduces Gemini 3.8 Live Models for Voice Agents
Key points
- Gemini 3.8 Live and 3.8 Live Extended Thinking were introduced on September 17, 2026.
- The models enhance near real-time reasoning for voice agents.
- Gemini 3.8 Live is for scale and cost efficiency, with conversational intelligence and visual grounding.
- Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking handles high-complexity tasks and multi-step reasoning.
- The models are available through the Gemini API and Google AI Studio.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash TTS and 3.8 Flash-Lite TTS are new text-to-speech models.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash TTS is for creative direction and character design.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash-Lite TTS is for high-volume, cost-efficient scale.
- The new models are part of the Gemini Audio family.
- Gemini 3.5 Live Translate and 3.5 Transcribe are also part of the Gemini Audio family.
New Models for Voice AI
Google DeepMind introduced two new AI models, Gemini 3.8 Live and Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking, on September 17, 2026. These models are designed to advance near real-time reasoning for voice agents, making AI conversations more intuitive and intelligent.
Model Capabilities
Gemini 3.8 Live is built for scale and cost efficiency, combining conversational intelligence with fluid dialogue and visual grounding. Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking is designed for high-complexity tasks, offering increased intelligence and multi-step reasoning. It achieved the top spot on Artificial Analysis' Speech to Speech Quality Index with 82.6 and leads in agentic task completion with 68.6% on τ-Voice and 35.1% on Sierra’s τ-Voice-banking benchmark.
Developer and Enterprise Tools
These models provide developers and enterprises with building blocks for reliable, production-ready voice agents. They also aim to make speaking with Gemini more fluid and collaborative across the Gemini app, Google Workspace, and Search, enabling users to tackle complex tasks using voice.
Comparison with Other Models
The Gemini 3.8 Live models approach real-time voice agent functionality differently from other offerings. Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking keeps reasoning within the voice model, allowing it to continue speaking while executing asynchronous tool calls. This contrasts with approaches that separate real-time conversation from backend reasoning, pushing more orchestration to the application layer.
Updates
- Gemini 3.8 Flash TTS and 3.8 Flash-Lite TTS are new text-to-speech models.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash TTS is for creative direction and character design.
- Gemini 3.8 Flash-Lite TTS is for high-volume, cost-efficient scale.
- The new models are part of the Gemini Audio family.
- Gemini 3.5 Live Translate and 3.5 Transcribe are also part of the Gemini Audio family.
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How outlets covered it
Google's Gemini has released two new text-to-speech (TTS) models, 3.8 Flash TTS and 3.8 Flash-Lite TTS, expanding its audio family. These models offer advanced voice generation capabilities for creative applications and high-volume audio content, providing more dynamic and expressive audio experiences for developers and enterprises.
Google released Gemini 3.8 Live and Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking, new voice models designed to reduce latency in voice agents by allowing them to continue speaking during background processing. This release follows OpenAI's GPT-Live-1, with both companies offering different architectural approaches to address the latency challenge in conversational AI.
Google has introduced Gemini 3.8 Live and Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking, two new AI models designed to improve near real-time reasoning for voice agents. These models aim to make AI conversations more intuitive and intelligent, offering capabilities for both scalable, cost-efficient applications and high-complexity tasks requiring multi-step reasoning.