Google Vertex AI
๐ข Provider Information
Provider Name: Google Vertex AI
Official Website: https://cloud.google.com/vertex-ai
Console: https://console.cloud.google.com/vertex-ai
Type: Trial Account - Provides $300 trial credit for 90 days
๐ Product Overview
Google Vertex AI is an enterprise-level AI platform under Google Cloud Platform (GCP), providing comprehensive AI development, training, and deployment services. Through Vertex AI, developers can use Google’s latest AI models (Gemini series), and also access MLOps tools and AutoML services.
Core Advantages:
- ๐ค Gemini Series - Google’s most advanced AI models
- ๐ข Enterprise-Grade - Complete MLOps and monitoring
- ๐จ Multimodal - Supports text, images, audio, video
- ๐ฐ Generous Trial Credit - $300 trial credit for 90 days
- ๐ง Rich Tools - Vertex AI Studio, Model Garden, etc.
Rating: โญโญโญโญโญ (Enterprise-Grade!)
๐ Registration and Account
Registration Requirements
| Requirement | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Account Registration | โ Required | Google Account required |
| Credit Card Binding | โ Required | Won’t charge automatically, only for verification |
| Phone Verification | โ Required | Need to verify phone number |
| Email Verification | โ Required | Use Google Account email |
Registration Steps
Register Google Account
If you don’t have a Google Account, visit https://accounts.google.com to register one first.
Visit Google Cloud Console
Open browser, visit https://console.cloud.google.com, log in with your Google Account.
Activate Free Trial
- After first login, you’ll see “Activate Free Trial” prompt
- Click “Activate Free Trial” button
- Select your country/region (select according to actual location)
- Fill in personal/company information:
- Account type (select “Personal” or “Business”)
- Name, address, etc.
- Bind credit card:
- โ ๏ธ Important: This is only for identity verification, won’t charge automatically
- After trial credit exhausted, services stop, won’t deduct card fees
- Agree to terms of service, click “Start Free Trial”
- โ Successfully activated! Received $300 trial credit, valid for 90 days
Create a Project
- In Google Cloud Console, click project selector in the top left
- Click “New Project” button
- Enter project name (e.g., “My AI Project”)
- Click “Create”
Enable Vertex AI API
- In the top search box, search for “Vertex AI API”
- Click “Vertex AI API”
- Click “Enable” button
- Wait a few seconds, API activated successfully
Create API Key (Optional)
If you want to use Vertex AI API for programming, create an API key:
- In the navigation menu, select “APIs & Services” > “Credentials”
- Click “Create Credentials” > “API Key”
- Copy the created API key
- โ ๏ธ Important: Keep API key secure, don’t leak
๐ฏ Provided Services
Google Vertex AI provides two main services:
1. Vertex AI Studio Chatbot Service
- Type: Web testing interface
- Access URL: https://console.cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/generative/multimodal/create/text
- Features: Directly test Gemini models, supports multimodal
- Supports: Gemini 2.0 Flash, Gemini 1.5 Pro, Gemini 1.5 Flash
2. Vertex AI API Service
- Type: RESTful API
- Features: Fully functional, supports streaming, function calling, etc.
- Models: Gemini 2.0 Flash, Gemini 1.5 Pro, Gemini 1.5 Flash
- Quota: $300 trial credit for 90 days
๐ Quota Overview
Trial Account
| Limit Type | Quota | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Trial Credit | $300 | One-time |
| Validity | 90 days | Starts from activation date |
| Requests Per Minute (RPM) | Varies | Depends on model and region |
| Requests Per Day (RPD) | Varies | Depends on model and region |
| Auto Charge After Expiration | โ Won’t | Services stop, won’t charge automatically |
Model Pricing (Trial Credit Deduction)
| Model | Input Cost | Output Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini 2.0 Flash | $0.075/M tokens | $0.30/M tokens | Latest, fastest |
| Gemini 1.5 Pro | $1.25/M tokens | $5.00/M tokens | Most powerful |
| Gemini 1.5 Flash | $0.075/M tokens | $0.30/M tokens | Balanced |
โ ๏ธ Important Notes:
- Trial credit $300, suitable for testing and light usage
- Credit valid for 90 days, expired unused portion invalidated
- After credit exhausted or expired, services stop, need to upgrade to paid account
- Won’t charge automatically, safe to use
๐ค Model Overview
Gemini 2.0 Flash (Experimental)
| Parameter | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Model Name | gemini-2.0-flash-exp |
Experimental version |
| Context Length | 1M tokens | Ultra-long text processing |
| Capabilities | Fast, multimodal | Supports text, images, audio |
| Price | $0.075 (in) / $0.30 (out) per M tokens | Most economical |
Excels At:
- ๐ Ultra-fast response speed
- ๐จ Multimodal processing (text, images, audio)
- ๐ Long text understanding
- ๐ป Code generation
Gemini 1.5 Pro
| Parameter | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Model Name | gemini-1.5-pro |
Flagship model |
| Context Length | 2M tokens | Ultra-long text processing |
| Capabilities | Most powerful | Suitable for complex tasks |
| Price | $1.25 (in) / $5.00 (out) per M tokens | Relatively expensive |
Excels At:
- ๐ง Complex reasoning
- ๐ Extremely long text processing (2M tokens)
- ๐จ High-quality multimodal processing
- ๐ฌ Professional knowledge Q&A
Gemini 1.5 Flash
| Parameter | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Model Name | gemini-1.5-flash |
Balanced model |
| Context Length | 1M tokens | Long text processing |
| Capabilities | Balanced performance | Cost-effective |
| Price | $0.075 (in) / $0.30 (out) per M tokens | More economical |
Excels At:
- ๐ฌ General conversation
- ๐ Document processing
- ๐จ Multimodal tasks
- ๐ป Code generation
๐ Core Advantages
1. Gemini Series Models
Most Advanced:
- Google’s latest large language models
- Powerful multimodal capabilities
- Long context windows (up to 2M tokens)
Rich Choices:
- Gemini 2.0 Flash: Fastest, most economical
- Gemini 1.5 Flash: Balanced, cost-effective
- Gemini 1.5 Pro: Most powerful, for complex tasks
2. Enterprise-Grade Platform
Complete MLOps:
- Model training and tuning
- Model deployment and monitoring
- Version management
- A/B testing
High Availability:
- Multiple region deployment
- Automatic scaling
- High availability guarantee
3. Multimodal Capabilities
Supports:
- ๐ Text generation and understanding
- ๐ผ๏ธ Image understanding and generation
- ๐ต Audio processing
- ๐ฌ Video understanding
Applications:
- Intelligent Q&A (text + images)
- Content moderation
- Multimedia analysis
4. Rich Tools
Vertex AI Studio:
- Visual model testing interface
- Prompt engineering tools
- Model comparison
Model Garden:
- Abundant pre-trained models
- One-click deployment
- Custom training
โ ๏ธ Usage Notes
Trial Credit Management
- Trial credit $300, suitable for testing and medium usage
- Valid for 90 days, expired unused portion invalidated
- Monitor credit consumption in console to avoid unexpected depletion
- After credit exhausted, services stop, need to upgrade to paid account
Model Selection
- Testing/General tasks: Use Gemini 2.0 Flash or 1.5 Flash, economical
- Complex tasks: Use Gemini 1.5 Pro, more powerful
- Long text processing: 1.5 Pro supports up to 2M tokens
Rate Limits
- Trial accounts have RPM and RPD limits, specific values depend on model and region
- View current quotas in console
- If limits insufficient, can apply for quota increase
API Key Security
- Don’t expose keys in public code
- Can create different API keys for different projects
- Regularly check usage statistics to detect abnormal usage
๐ Comparison with Other Services
| Feature | Vertex AI | Google AI Studio | OpenAI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trial Credit | ๐ $300 (90 days) | Completely free | $5 |
| Flagship Model | Gemini 1.5 Pro | Gemini 2.0 Flash | GPT-4 |
| Context Length | ๐ 2M tokens | 1M tokens | 128K |
| Multimodal | โ Excellent | โ Excellent | โ Good |
| MLOps Tools | ๐ Very Rich | โ None | โ None |
| Entry Barrier | ๐ง High (card required) | โ Low | ๐ง High (card required) |
| Mainland China Access | ๐ง VPN Required | ๐ง VPN Required | ๐ง Restricted |
๐ก Selection Suggestions
Reasons to Choose Vertex AI
โ Highly Recommended:
- Need to build enterprise-level AI applications
- Need complete MLOps tools
- Need high-performance multimodal capabilities
- Need ultra-long context processing (up to 2M tokens)
- Have $300 trial credit to fully test features
โ Suitable Scenarios:
- Enterprise-level chatbot
- Intelligent customer service system
- Document analysis and processing
- Multimodal application development
- AI model training and deployment
โ Not Suitable For:
- Can’t bind credit card
- Only for light testing (Google AI Studio is better)
- Need completely free long-term usage (trial credit has time limit)
- Need extremely high free quota - choose DeepSeek or Groq
๐ Related Links
- Official Website: https://cloud.google.com/vertex-ai
- Console: https://console.cloud.google.com/vertex-ai
- Vertex AI Studio: https://console.cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/generative
- API Documentation: https://cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/docs
- Model Garden: https://console.cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/model-garden
- Pricing Information: https://cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/pricing
- Gemini Documentation: https://ai.google.dev/docs
๐ Changelog
- December 2024: Gemini 2.0 Flash released (experimental version)
- 2024: Gemini 1.5 series performance continuously optimized
- 2024: Vertex AI Studio features enhanced
- 2024: Context window expanded to 2M tokens
๐ง Support & Feedback
- Official Documentation: https://cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/docs
- Community Forum: https://www.googlecloudcommunity.com/gc/Vertex-AI/bd-p/cloud-vertex-ai
- Technical Support: Support available through Google Cloud Console
- Issue Reporting: https://issuetracker.google.com
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