FAQ
What changed in the June 30, 2026 refresh?
The primary change is a rebranding: Vertex AI is now Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform. The exam guide, product names, and scenario descriptions use the new terminology. The refresh also sharpened focus on GKE Autopilot, Cloud Run jobs, Workload Identity Federation, and new IAM allow/deny policies. If you are using study materials dated before June 2026, update them.
Do I need to know Vertex AI or Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform?
You need to understand the platform at the deployment and operations level. This means deploying agents to Agent Runtime, configuring models in the platform, and understanding how the platform integrates with GKE and Cloud Run. You do not need to be an AI engineer.
How long does it take to prepare for ACE?
Eight weeks for candidates with six months of hands-on Google Cloud experience. Ten to twelve weeks if you are new to cloud or Google Cloud specifically. Four to six weeks if you already work with GCP daily and are comfortable with gcloud CLI, GKE, and IAM.
What is the passing score?
Google does not publicly disclose the passing score. Community estimates suggest approximately 70%. Do not try to calculate how many questions you can miss. Focus on being comfortably competent across all five domains.
Can I use reference materials during the exam?
No. The ACE exam is closed-book. You cannot access documentation, websites, or any external resources during the test.
Is there a renewal option?
Yes. ACE is valid for 3 years. You can renew by taking the standard exam, a shorter renewal exam (20 questions, 1 hour, $75), or completing designated courses and skill badges in Google Skills at no exam cost. Starting in July 2026, Google offers a free renewal path through Google Skills for ACE, PCA, PDE, and CDL. The Google Skills path extends your certification by one year.
What is the most important domain to study?
Deploying and implementing a cloud solution (25%) is the heaviest domain. Combined with Ensuring successful operation (20%) and Setting up a cloud solution environment (20%), these three domains represent roughly 65% of the exam. Every domain carries enough weight that skipping one is risky.
What are the most common ways people fail?
- Confusing GKE Autopilot with Standard mode. Autopilot is fully managed, Standard gives you node-level control. The exam tests when each is the right choice.
- Not understanding IAM policy inheritance. Roles granted at the organization level apply to all projects. Roles granted at the project level apply to all resources in the project. The exam tests whether you can reason about inheritance.
- Choosing the wrong storage class. Standard, Nearline, Coldline, and Archive have different access costs and retrieval times. Match the class to the access pattern.
- Not understanding Workload Identity Federation. This is new in the 2026 refresh. It allows external workloads to authenticate without service account keys.
- Skipping the Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform content. At least a few questions will test the platform by its new name. If you only studied Vertex AI materials, you may not recognize the terminology.
What are the three biggest preparation mistakes?
- Studying from pre-June 2026 materials. The refresh changed product names and added new content. If your materials reference Vertex AI without mentioning Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, they are outdated.
- Reading without building. The ACE is a practical exam. If you have not deployed a GKE cluster, configured a Cloud Run service, or applied a Terraform configuration, you will struggle with scenario questions.
- Not practicing under time pressure. 50-60 questions in 120 minutes is roughly two minutes per question. Scenario-heavy questions with multiple constraints may take longer. Practice timed Mock Exams from Week 7.
Is there a renewal option?
Yes. ACE is valid for 3 years. You can renew by taking the standard exam, a shorter renewal exam (20 questions, 1 hour, $75), or completing designated courses and skill badges in Google Skills at no exam cost. The Google Skills path extends your certification by one year and requires completing coursework within the last year of your certification's active period.