When Your config Raises "Extra inputs are not permitted", Check the Spelling of Every Key
If a google-genai call fails with a pydantic ValidationError (extra_forbidden) the moment you pass a config, it is almost always a one-letter typo. Here is the output I reproduced, a small function that checks keys before the call, and how to tell why response.text came back as None.
generate_images Survives Until 2027. Your Image Generation Still Stops on August 17
google-genai 2.18.1 still ships generate_images, and the SDK deprecation notice points at 2027. The imagen-4.0 models, meanwhile, shut down on August 17. Here is what those two deadlines actually mean, measured on my own machine.
Rewriting generate_images as generate_content, where the arguments actually go
Ahead of the August 17 Imagen shutdown, I checked the SDK directly: of the 17 arguments in GenerateImagesConfig, only 5 move across unchanged. Here is the mapping, a compatibility layer that keeps callers working, and a way to verify the request shape without an API key.
Keeping Nightly Batches Alive After the Gemini CLI Stops Responding: A google-genai SDK Fallback
On June 18 the Gemini CLI stops answering requests. Here is a small fallback harness that probes whether the CLI can still respond and quietly reroutes unattended batch jobs to the google-genai SDK, built from my own automation.
Why per-turn generationConfig is ignored in Gemini API chat sessions
If you pass a different generationConfig (temperature, max_output_tokens, response_schema) to each send_message in a google-genai chat session and the behavior never changes, this walkthrough shows what is actually happening, why the SDK is designed that way, and three workarounds we use in production for review-summary and reply-draft pipelines.
Why Gemini API Returns MALFORMED_FUNCTION_CALL — Causes and Fixes
Hit by finishReason: MALFORMED_FUNCTION_CALL in production? Three root causes, how to diagnose each, and the workarounds that actually worked in our indie iOS/Android pipeline.
Gemini API: GEMINI_API_KEY vs GOOGLE_API_KEY — Which One Should You Actually Use?
A practical, SDK-by-SDK guide to the GEMINI_API_KEY vs GOOGLE_API_KEY confusion. Covers precedence rules, the Vertex AI auto-switch, and four real-world traps with diagnostic snippets you can paste into a running app.