Google Cloud

Google for Startups Cloud Program provides credits in tiers: pre-funded startups building an MVP get $2,000; Seed to Series A startups get $200,000 over 2 years; AI-first startups at that stage get up to $350,000. Apply at https://cloud.google.com/startup.

For the funded tiers, credits run over 2 years. Year 1 covers 100% of usage up to $100,000 ($250,000 for AI-first startups), and Year 2 covers 20% of usage up to an additional $100,000. Credits expire if unused, they do not roll over beyond the program period. If you exhaust credits before 2 years, standard GCP billing begins. Google notifies you as credits approach depletion.

Yes, GCP credits apply to Gemini API usage billed through GCP (via Vertex AI or Google AI Studio with GCP billing). This includes Gemini 1.5 Pro, Gemini 1.5 Flash, and other Google models available through the Gemini API. Credits do not apply to Google Workspace or non-GCP products.

Yes, Cloud Run is GCP's primary web application hosting service and is excellent for containerized applications. It handles Node.js, Python, Go, Java, and any other runtime that runs in a Docker container. App Engine (GCP's older platform-as-a-service) is also available for simpler deployments. For Kubernetes-based deployments, GKE (Google Kubernetes Engine) is one of the most mature managed Kubernetes services available.

Yes, GCP requires a billing account with a valid payment method even when credits are applied. You are not charged until credits are exhausted. The payment method is held on file to cover any usage beyond the credit balance. Google provides clear notifications before credits are depleted.

GCP credits apply only to Google Cloud services. You can use GCP for infrastructure while using credits from other providers (AWS, Azure) for different services if needed. GCP credits cannot be combined with other GCP promotional offers applied to the same billing account at the same time.