I don't think there's any requirement that you use Google Compute Engine in order to use this API. Yes, you sign up for an account, but of course you have to si

I don't think there's any requirement that you use Google Compute Engine in order to use this API. Yes, you sign up for an account, but of course you have to sign up for an account to use it. This API is part of the platform. Similarly, you can use the Google Translate API without using Compute Engine, App Engine, etc. Note: I work for Google (but not on any of these products).