Arcade Facilitator 2026 Bonus Milestone

[Yugali]

Remember the first time you tried to learn how to drive a car or ride a bike?

You could read the manual ten times, memorize every single traffic rule, and study how the engine works down to the last bolt. But none of that actually meant you knew how to drive. The real confidence only came the moment you finally sat in the driver’s seat, put your hands on the wheel, and took off.

Building tech skills works the exact same way.

Right now, everyone is talking about AI. But there is a huge difference between just typing prompts into a chatbot and actually sitting in the driver’s seat to build an entire AI system yourself.

When you first open the Google Skills Arcade page and look at those Arcade Prize Tiers and the Arcade Points needed, it can feel like looking at a massive roadmap before a journey. It’s easy to feel intimidated. But the goal here isn’t just to accumulate Arcade Points—it’s to empower you to build real, industry-ready technology.

That is exactly why the Arcade Facilitator 2026 Bonus Milestone was created. It is a quick, practical project designed to take you from reading about AI to actually building and deploying your very first working AI Agent on Google Cloud.

Plus, completing it hands you an extra 10 Bonus Arcade Points, giving you a serious head start toward those Arcade Prize Tiers. And the best part? You can easily finish the whole thing in under a day.

What is the Arcade Facilitator 2026 Bonus Milestone?
This milestone guides you through creating an AI Agent using Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform. It gives you a complete, standalone project that you can proudly showcase on your resume or talk about in interviews.

Before You Begin (Quick Checklist)
Make sure you have checked off these three prerequisites so your points are credited properly:

• You are officially enrolled in the Arcade Facilitator 2026 cohort.

• You have earned both the GEAR Badge and the Arcade - GEAR Badge on your Google Developer Profile.

• You have already unlocked Milestone #1 in the Facilitator Program 2026 to become eligible to participate.

**How to Complete It in 4 Simple Steps:

1. Finish the 4 GEAR Skill Badges**

• Create Your First Gemini Enterprise Application

• Engineer AI Agents with ADK

• Deploy Multi-Agent Architectures

• Orchestrate Multi-agent Workflows

(Completing these also counts toward your Google Skills Arcade milestones, so you get double the progress.)

2. Activate Your Google Cloud Free Trial Sign up for the 90-day free trial ($300 in credits) using your enrolled email address. If you already have an active billing account linked to that email, you can skip this step. *(Google Cloud will never automatically charge your card when the trial ends.)
*
If you have any questions or run into issues while setting up your Free Google Cloud Triall, make sure to check out the FAQs.

3. Build Your First AI Agent Follow the project instructions to build your agent. Just make sure to follow the final step to grant access permission to the verifier email address (arcade-agent-verifier@google.com) so your project can be validated.

4. Submit Your Verification Details Fill out the verification form with two quick details from your Google Cloud Console:

• Your unique Project ID

• Your unique 18-character Billing Account ID

That is literally all it takes to lock in your 10 extra points.

Don’t worry about those points targets on the Google Skills Arcade page. Take it one step at a time, start with this milestone, and build something amazing today.

See you in the Cloud!

[Karthik_Kakumanu]

Hello Google Cloud Team,

I am participating in the Google Cloud Arcade Facilitator 2026 Bonus Milestone.

I previously activated the Google Cloud Free Trial and later canceled the billing account before using all of the trial credits.

I am now trying to complete the Bonus Milestone, but I cannot create a Google Cloud Billing Account. Every attempt fails with:

Billing setup can’t be completed
Error Code: OR_BACR2_44

I have already tried:

• Different payment methods (UPI and Mastercard)
• Different browsers
• Verified my Google Payments profile
• Creating the billing account from the Billing page

Could you please clarify:

1. Am I still eligible for the Arcade Facilitator 2026 Bonus Milestone if my previous free trial was canceled?
2. Can my previous billing account be restored, or can I create a regular billing account instead?
3. How can I resolve the OR_BACR2_44 error?

Thank you.

[Aakash6]

also same error process

[Joydip1]

While this is a win-win situation, many users, including myself, are experiencing a persistent issue with QR code scans(UPI transaction). After a successful transaction where money is deducted, the QR code reloads and displays an error. I have been facing this problem for over three months; please look into this .

[Joydip1]

To answer your questions:

1. You are eligible because the points are earned using provided credentials rather than your personal account.
2. & 3. I am unsure, as many are currently experiencing the same error so I think they will resolve it in the earliest

[Gaurav_Panchtilak]

I have a serious issue in billing account. i have started autopay yesterday night and folllowed all steps using upi . but while i check vertex ai option to enable api is not working and top of the website showing to do payment again , checking billing account it is showing account closed error. It will be a great help if i get to know what is the real issue i am facing

[Mubaris]

i have competed 5 skill badges (Arcade Simulator: Data Mesh Architect,Safe Space,voyage,base camp,adventure)and 18 badges and Arcade trial is currently unavailable so can i still do the Bonus Missions?

[Joydip1]

Don’t worry, they’ll make up for it this month.

[Gautam_kumar4]

I have one question when the next month game update in arcade facilator program

[Kiran_Reddy]

Hi everyone and @Yugali,

I am participating in the Arcade Facilitator 2026 program and recently ran into a frustrating eligibility issue with the new 10-Point Bonus Milestone.

I was excited to tackle the AI Agent requirements. However, I had already completed the “Engineer AI Agents with Agent Development Kit (ADK)” skill badge prior to the July 13th campaign start date. I originally completed this specific badge because of my participation in the Google Cloud Gen AI APAC Edition program.

When I reached out to Google Skills Support regarding this, they informed me that badges completed before the July 13th window do not count toward the 10 point bonus. If I had known that completing this badge earlier would make me ineligible for the bonus points now, I would have never done it in the first place.

This essentially penalizes learners who proactively participated in previous Google programs before the current Facilitator program launched. Having an already-earned skill disqualified simply because it was completed early seems counterintuitive to the learning experience.

Has anyone else faced this issue where their prior ADK badge completions are not being recognized? Is there any way the program managers can map our existing badge completions to our enrolled emails so we are not penalized for learning ahead of time?

Would appreciate any insights or help from the community or facilitators!

[Omkar_Pawar1]

Your service requires a one-off payment of at least ₹1,000.00 to become active. If you’ve already made a payment, it should be credited to your account soon.

Already added payment method then why this extra payment of Rs.1000 ?

[Joydip1]

Many people are experiencing this as they have previously completed, and it likely cannot be bypassed until an official update is released.

[chmanish]

thanks for meaningful discussion and for mind ignition

[Faisal_Hussain]

Hello Google Developer Community! 👋

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been actively learning through Google Cloud Skills Boost and participating in Google Arcade. While completing labs and learning paths, I realized that simply finishing courses isn’t enough—the way we learn makes a huge difference.
Here are 7 strategies that have helped me learn more effectively.
1. Understand the “Why” Behind Every Step
Instead of copying commands from a lab, I try to understand why each service or command is used.
This makes it much easier to remember concepts when building projects later.
2. Keep Personal Notes
After every lab, I write down:
Important commands
New Google Cloud services
Common mistakes
Useful documentation links
These notes become a quick reference whenever I revisit a topic.
3. Practice Without Looking at the Instructions
After completing a lab, I challenge myself to repeat it from memory.
Even if I forget a few steps, this exercise greatly improves my understanding.
4. Review Previous Topics Regularly
Instead of moving from one badge to another immediately, I spend some time revisiting previous learning paths.
Revision helps convert short-term learning into long-term knowledge.
5. Learn from the Community
Reading discussions in the Google Developer Forums has helped me discover:
Better learning resources
Common troubleshooting tips
Best practices shared by experienced developers
Sometimes community discussions teach things that official labs don’t mention.
6. Build Small Projects
After learning a new Google Cloud service, I try to build something small.
Examples include:
Uploading files to Cloud Storage
Creating a simple Cloud Run application
Using BigQuery with a sample dataset
Exploring Vertex AI examples
Building something yourself makes concepts much easier to understand.
7. Stay Consistent
I’ve found that learning 30–60 minutes every day is much more effective than trying to complete many labs in a single day.
Consistency always beats speed.
My Biggest Takeaway
Google Cloud Skills Boost and Arcade are excellent learning platforms, but the real value comes from understanding the concepts—not just earning badges.
Developing good learning habits makes every course much more rewarding.
Discussion Question
I’d love to hear from the community.
What learning habit has helped you the most while using Google Cloud Skills Boost or participating in Google Arcade?
Please share your tips—I believe everyone can learn something new from each other’s experiences.
Happy learning!

[M_Kaushik1]

Hello everyone,

I completed all the required activities to earn the 750-credit bonus milestone in the Google Cloud Arcade Facilitator 2026 program. However, my credits have not been updated.

I contacted the Arcade Facilitator support team, shared screenshots and a screen recording, and was informed that my case has been assigned to a dedicated team. It has now been several days, but I have not received any further update.

Is anyone else experiencing the same issue, or has anyone received a resolution?

Any guidance would be appreciated.

[stemxplore]

I don’t have any credit card. I want to skip Sign-up for Google Cloud Free Trial

[Joydip1]

A valid payment method is required to sign up and activate your Google Cloud free trial.

[M_Kaushik1]

Hey guys !!

Anyone got an update.

[VincentiusIndrayanto]

Thanks for sharing this, Yugali.

I have one question regarding the Bonus Milestone. Is there an official deadline for completing the AI Agent project, or is it available throughout the entire Arcade Facilitator 2026 program?

I think this information would help facilitators plan their learning schedule more effectively.

[Alex9]

Thanks for sharing this update! The new Bonus Milestone looks like a great addition to the 2026 program. I appreciate the focus on practical AI skills alongside the regular Arcade activities. Looking forward to completing the milestones and learning throughout the program.