# Gemini 3 Flash, GPT-Image-1.5, Skills vs MCPs, and Our 2025 Model Reviews - EP99.29

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/this-day-in-ai-podcast/gemini-3-flash-gpt-image-1-5-skills-vs-mcps-and-our-2025-model-reviews-ep99-29
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/this-day-in-ai-podcast/gemini-3-flash-gpt-image-1-5-skills-vs-mcps-and-our-2025-model-reviews-ep99-29.md
Podcast: [This Day in AI Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/this-day-in-ai-podcast)
Published: 2025-12-23T01:06:41+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/325fe844
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/325fe844/d07f50b4.mp3
Processing state: failed
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/this-day-in-ai-podcast/episodes/gemini-3-flash-gpt-image-1-5-skills-vs-mcps-and-our-2025-model-reviews-ep99-29
Duration seconds: 4953

## Resource

The Gift of Simtheory: https://simtheory.ai --- 2025 Model Timeline: https://simulationtheory.ai/5fd0e964-4c41-4f9a-bbb3-2a398d8500f0 It's the long-anticipated holiday special... except Mike and Kris forgot to prepare so it's just a normal episode. 🎅 This week: Gemini 3 Flash drops and it's actually incredible - cheap, fast, and weirdly smarter than Gemini 3 Pro at tool calling. We put GPT Image 1.5 head-to-head against Nano Banana Pro using hobo photos (spoiler: Google wins again). Plus, FireCrawl Agent is the research tool we've been waiting for, Anthropic launches Skills as an open standard, and we do a full 2025 model timeline recap. Also featuring: Best and Worst Model of the Year awards, 2026 predictions where Mike bets on OpenAI (controversial), and the full holiday musical outro where AI sings about what an "average" year it's been. CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro - Holiday Special That Isn't 00:55 Shipping Gemini 3 Flash While Looking Like a "Sophisticated Programming Hobo" 02:52 Gemini 3 Flash Review: Cheap, Fast, Surprisingly Smart 06:31 The Unreliable Frontier Model Problem 10:45 GPT Image 1.5 vs Nano Banana Pro Showdown 17:04 FireCrawl Agent: Research That Actually Works 25:56 Gemini Deep Research Agent Deep Dive 31:57 Skills vs MCPs: The New Paradigm 43:35 Enterprise Skills: Codifying Business Procedures 49:57 2025 Model Timeline Recap 59:53 Best & Worst Model of 2025 Awards 1:04:58 2026 Predictions: Mike Bets on OpenAI 1:14:09 Final Thoughts & Holiday Thank Yous 1:19:35 🎄 Holiday Musical: "A Very Average Christmas" Have a great Christmas/Holiday/New Year, see you in 2026! xox

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