Colab Pro is probably the "we want to give verified non-bots more access, but need a small monetary cost to actually stop abuse". The collection of a credit ca

Colab Pro is probably the "we want to give verified non-bots more access, but need a small monetary cost to actually stop abuse". The collection of a credit card isn't just monetary: it also provides some sort of anti-abuse as most people have a limited number of credit cards; and even a bulk credit farm operation has a monetary cost per card (I read the going rate for a hacked card even is $100 ish). Aged Google Accounts go for $1-2 from account farmers these days.