Returning after months: Billing confusion between AI Studio and Google Cloud despite having Startup Credits. Need help!
Hi everyone,
Due to a severe family emergency, I had to step away from my projects and the internet for several months. Before leaving late last year, I had built a fully functioning AI-based website. I was also accepted into the Google Cloud Startup program and received credits, which are still active in my account.
My backend is hosted on Cloud Run, and I was relying on these startup credits to cover both the hosting and the AI API costs.
Recently, I finally got back to work and found my site down. I managed to fix the server, but now I’m getting a "billing issue/error" prompt, even though I still have plenty of credits left. I thought about making a small minimal prepaid payment to verify or reactivate my billing account, but I am completely confused. I now see two separate billing spaces: Google AI Studio and Google Cloud.
Could someone please help me with these two questions so I can get my services back online?
Where exactly should I make this small payment to keep my account and services alive? (AI Studio or the main GCP console?)
Will my existing Google Cloud Startup credits still cover my AI/Gemini API usage, or is AI Studio now going to bill me separately outside of my GCP credits?
Any guidance would be deeply appreciated. Thank you!