Google dropped a next-gen Gemini Deep Research agent the same day OpenAI unveiled GPT-5.2, kicking off a sharper, capability-driven AI competition.
Google and OpenAI didn’t accidentally collide on December 11, 2025; they staged a duel.
Google quietly released a significantly upgraded Gemini Deep Research agent, rebuilt on its Gemini 3 Pro reasoning model, the company’s most advanced system for multitasking, long-form AI research work. This agent isn’t just another chatbot; it’s designed to analyse documents, plan research steps, and generate structured insights with far fewer factual errors than earlier systems.
The rollout includes multiple variants: Instant, Thinking, and Pro to balance speed, reasoning quality, and task complexity. Benchmarks like GDPval suggest substantial performance gains over prior models, especially in knowledge work and extended context handling.
This near-simultaneous launch highlights a strategic dance more than coincidence. OpenAI’s GPT-5.2, while still broadly general-purpose, leans on massive context windows and refined capabilities to reinforce its standing in enterprise and developer ecosystems.
Critically, neither company is claiming outright dominance. They’re staking out different terrain.
Google’s agentic focus aims at deep, stepwise research and analysis workflows. OpenAI’s model upgrades aim at breadth: better reasoning, productivity features, and integration with tools across platforms. Together, these releases underscore a phase. AI “agent” systems that can plan, act, and manage multistep tasks are the real frontier, not just incremental model improvements.
This isn’t hype.
It’s a competitive shift: AI must work on real problems over time with reliability, and both companies just raised the bar in their own ways.
