Google Restricts Free Access to Gemini 3 Pro, Citing Demand Surge

Google has tightened free access to its newly updated Gemini 3 Pro and Nano Banana Pro models, introducing variable daily limits for free-tier users. The adjustment comes amid a surge in global usage following recent model upgrades, prompting Google to temporarily scale back certain NotebookLM features as well.

According to Google’s product update shared with users this week, the company has applied “new daily variability caps” on Gemini 3 Pro access for non-paid users. While Google did not disclose specific limits, it noted that availability may fluctuate depending on daily traffic and computational demand.

Users reported experiencing more frequent “limit reached” prompts, particularly during high-load periods. Google described this as part of an interim access model while it expands underlying infrastructure.

NotebookLM Also Sees Temporary Feature Reductions

Google confirmed that NotebookLM, its AI-powered research and summarisation assistant, has also had “scaled-back functionality” for free users. This includes stricter usage thresholds and reduced real-time generative responses for large documents.

The company stated that these constraints will be lifted once the system stabilises and capacity increases.

Paid Plans Continue Unaffected

Google clarified that paid Gemini plans, including the Gemini Advanced tier, remain unaffected. Enterprise and Workspace AI customers continue to receive guaranteed access levels, reinforcing Google’s broader strategy to prioritise revenue-generating segments during peak load.

Industry analysts note that this aligns with Google’s recent AI monetisation push, especially as competition intensifies across offerings from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Meta.

With India emerging as one of the fastest-growing AI adoption markets, reduced access to free AI tools may impact students, indie developers, and early-stage startups who rely heavily on open-tier experimentation.

However, analysts argue this may also nudge users toward structured, enterprise-grade consumption models, a trend already visible in the AI platform business.

Google Says Limits Are Temporary

Google emphasised that these changes are temporary and aimed at improving overall service reliability: “We’ve seen unprecedented demand for Gemini 3. As we add more capacity, free-tier usage limits will return to normal.”

India’s Developer Community Reacts

Indian developers responded with mixed reactions. While many understand the need for load management, others expressed concern over growing dependency on AI models that might frequently fluctuate in availability.

Some startups indicated they may shift partial workloads to open-source or self-hosted alternatives to maintain continuity

With LLM competition accelerating and cost pressures rising, major AI firms, including Google, are moving toward tiered access with tighter guardrails. If demand continues to rise faster than infrastructure expansion, these temporary caps may become part of a broader industry trend.