diff --git a/components/AIAssist.tsx b/components/AIAssist.tsx
index 26aade1..17fce76 100644
--- a/components/AIAssist.tsx
+++ b/components/AIAssist.tsx
@@ -903,7 +903,11 @@ export default function AIAssist({ vibeMode = false }: { vibeMode?: boolean } =
 
         } catch (error) {
             console.error("Assist error:", error);
-            const message = error instanceof Error ? error.message : "Vibe Architect failed";
+            const rawMessage = error instanceof Error ? error.message : "Vibe Architect failed";
+            let message = rawMessage;
+            if (rawMessage.includes("429") || rawMessage.includes("insufficient_quota") || rawMessage.includes("Free allocated quota exceeded") || rawMessage.includes("rate_limit")) {
+                message = "API quota exceeded or rate limited. Please switch to a different AI provider in Settings, or wait a few minutes and try again.";
+            }
             const errorMsg: AIAssistMessage = { role: "assistant", content: message, timestamp: new Date() };
             updateTabById(requestTabId, { history: [...aiAssistHistory, errorMsg] });
         } finally {