Alphabet’s GOOGL stock was up 0.6% in after-hours trading on Tuesday after The Wall Street Journal reported that Google is preparing to launch a new AI model called Gemini 3.8 Flash. The stock had closed Tuesday’s regular session down nearly 1.3%.
The model, internally codenamed “Skimaki,” could launch as soon as Wednesday. It is designed specifically to improve Google’s coding capabilities, an area where Gemini has fallen behind rivals from Anthropic and OpenAI in recent months.
Flash models are built to run faster and at lower cost than Google’s most powerful AI models. They are less capable than Google’s largest models, which carry trillions of parameters, but are designed for speed and efficiency.
GOOGLE SET TO RELEASE GEMINI 3.8 FLASH THIS WEEK: WSJ
Google $GOOGL is expected to release Gemini 3.8 Flash, internally called “Skimaki,” as soon as Wednesday, with a major focus on coding.
In internal head-to-head tests inside Google’s coding tool Jetski, engineers reportedly… pic.twitter.com/fAGkyhUaJC
— Wall St Engine (@wallstengine) September 1, 2026
In internal testing, Google engineers used a tool called Jetski to run head-to-head evaluations. In those tests, engineers preferred Gemini 3.8 Flash over Anthropic’s Opus. That’s a meaningful benchmark given how competitive the AI coding space has become.
Google has been directing more research and computing resources toward coding this year. The company has also expanded its use of reinforcement learning, a training method where models improve by completing tasks through trial and error.
Google gained ground in the AI model race after launching Gemini 3.0 in November 2025, briefly moving ahead of some competitors. That lead proved short-lived. By 2026, Gemini had fallen behind the latest releases from both Anthropic and OpenAI.
The stakes are rising because AI coding agents are emerging as one of the biggest commercial uses of the technology. The 3.8 Flash launch may improve Google’s position, but analysts don’t expect it to immediately put the company back at the top.
GOOGL stock is up around 8% year-to-date, trailing the S&P 500’s 12.7% gain over the same period.
Away from the AI model race, Alphabet’s underlying business has been performing well. Google Search and other advertising revenue rose 17% year-over-year to $63.3 billion in Q2. Total Google advertising revenue came in at $81.6 billion, up 14%.
Google Cloud had a standout quarter. Revenue surged 82% to $24.8 billion, with operating income reaching $8.8 billion, more than three times the year-ago figure. The operating margin expanded to 35.6% from 20.7%.
The Cloud backlog climbed more than $50 billion sequentially to $514 billion. Alphabet expects to recognize slightly more than half of that as revenue over the next 24 months.
Subscriptions also contributed, with the Subscriptions, Platforms, and Devices segment up 15% year-over-year to $12.9 billion in Q2, driven by YouTube Music, YouTube Premium, and Google One.
Twenty-eight Wall Street analysts currently rate GOOGL a Strong Buy, based on 23 Buy ratings and five Holds. The average price target sits at around $426, implying roughly 26-27% upside from current levels.
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