Google is the name of the world’s largest search engine and the firm that powers it. It is one of the most well-known corporation names in the world, thanks mostly to the Google search engine, which billions of people use every day. Google’s net value will surpass one trillion dollars (market capitalization) 2023.
In this blog, we will tell you how Google grew into the behemoth it is today.
Formative Years
Founding Fathers Of Google Search Engine History
Before we discuss the intricacies of the first Google search, let’s learn about Google’s founding fathers, Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Owing to their genius, Google has rapidly developed into the world’s largest internet search engine.
Page and Brin were both PhD students at Stanford University in California. Larry Page worked on an exciting research topic involving search algorithms while pursuing a degree in computer science. In 1996, this search method was named “BackRub”.
Backrub
While search engines are not a new invention, Google, despite being a latecomer, quickly became one of the most popular platforms, marking when Google became popular for finding almost anything on the internet, although it repositioned several times in its infancy to optimize its internet search services before finally settling in Mountain View, CA.
The Google version from 2000 grew quickly. By 2004, Google had completed its first IPO and had established itself as one of the world’s most significant media businesses.
The Journey Of Page And Brin
The history of Google search is intriguing. They met at university and began their journey together, staying in touch even after completing their Computer Science programs. Brin, recognized for his expertise in mathematics, and Page, with his ever-growing interest in understanding more about the behavior of linking on the internet, invented an algorithm known as PageRank.
This algorithm, named after Larry Page, delves into ranking search results. It grades the findings based mostly on linking activity. These technologies converged, paving the way for the Google search engine’s debut on September 4, 1998. The search engine was first deployed on Stanford’s private network in August 1996.
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How did Larry Page and Sergey Brin Conceive the Name Google?
Page and Brin were recognized for their innovative brainwaves. They titled their firm Google after being inspired by many links between online pages. So, why is it named Googol? You may be wondering. Googol is a mathematical word (the number one followed by 100 zeros).
The wordplay on the mathematics term googol (the number 1 followed by 100 zeros) was ideal for the company because it precisely reflected Page and Brin’s goal. Their newfound firm, later renamed Google, mirrored this idea by expertly integrating information worldwide and making it easily accessible online.
Moving Ahead- Google Decides To Take Another Leap Forward
As Google grew, it began to attract the interest of investors and academics. Google was founded in September, the same year co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim took the bold choice to invest $100,000 in the company. Long story short, that was the beginning of Google Inc.
During Google’s early years, Brin and Page had no financial support to promote their company globally. The Sun Microsystems CEO’s contribution helped the Alphabet Inc. subsidiary relocate out of their dorms and into their first office.
Susan Wojcicki’s garage in Palo Alto, Menlo Park, California, served as Google’s initial workplace, which may or may not surprise you. What may be more unexpected is that Wojcicki became Google’s 16th employee and is now the CEO of YouTube.
Google began their firm with only a few old, outdated computers, a ping pong table for entertainment, a profusion of Google services, and a bright, blue carpet as their cherished possession.
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Hiring Eric Schmidt To “Supervise” Google
Despite the company’s exponential growth, Larry and Sergey felt it required “adult supervision” to fulfill its full potential. So, in 2001, Page and Brin hired Eric Schmidt, the former Novell CEO, to lead Google. Schmidt quickly joined the board of directors and was appointed Chairman in March 2001, owing to his extensive expertise and exceptional talent.
In 2004, Google released Gmail, Google Docs, and Google Drive, now among our favorite products. Schmidt served as CEO for ten years before announcing that it “no longer required adult supervision.”
Of course, this was before Schmidt became the company’s vice president and executive chairman, leaving the CEO position vacant for Page. No one is better qualified to serve as the company’s CEO than Page.
The (Failed) Relationship Between Yahoo And Google
Yahoo was the most popular search engine before Google became synonymous with the web. However, by 2000, Google’s popularity had skyrocketed, quickly becoming Yahoo’s default search engine.
In early 2002, Yahoo attempted to acquire Google for a hefty $3 billion! However, Google refused, claiming it was worth at least $5 billion.
In the same year, Google created and released something that would alter how we distribute and publish digital media online. Google launched Google News, a prominent information aggregation tool that became a widespread platform for accessing digital content online.
Alphabet
Few people are aware that Google’s parent business is named Alphabet. Alphabet, Google’s parent corporation, allowed the firm to grow from a traditional search engine to a technology conglomerate. Alphabet, the parent company of Google Inc., is headquartered in Mountain View, California.
It is extensively involved in various other business sectors, including advertising services, software, hardware, cloud computing, phone, desktop, and mobile apps. It also provides business to numerous industries, which we shall list below:
- Calico– Calico was created to combat illnesses associated with aging.
- Google Ventures – It offers capital to start-up businesses with innovative concepts (like Google itself had)
- Google X – It is developing innovative concepts and innovations.
- Nest – offers consumers interesting, clever home goods
- Google Capital– Investing in long-term technological trends through Google Capital
- Google — YouTube, Android, Google Maps, Ads, and Apps
Google 2004 -Officially Launched Gmail Services
An employee of Google named Paul Buchheit decided to address two major issues facing the company: growing storage needs and intensive internal communication. Buchheit felt confident in his abilities to use Ajax to develop a faster and more responsive email service because he had previous experience dealing with web-based email systems.
On April 1, 2004, Gmail was finally made available to the general public. At the time of this email service’s release, advanced search, 1 GB of storage, and many other amazing features were absent from most competing web services. When most other businesses only provided a few megs of storage, Google could enthrall its billion-plus viewers by providing an unprecedented 1 GB of storage.
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Going Public
Following Bechtolsheim’s original $100,000 investment, Google attracted numerous angel investments from other companies, including Jeff Bezos, the creator and CEO of Amazon.
The startup received investments from other venture capital companies, including Sequoia Capital and Kleiner Perkins, totaling approximately $25 million. The significant advertising revenue that Google’s web advertising solutions earned helped enhance its IPO’s success. As a result, the business completed its initial public offering in 2009.
The Next Big Move — Google Launched Google Maps
Google Maps was released in 2005 and has garnered millions of daily searches. A Google statement states, “Maps can be useful and fun.” Still, one of Google’s biggest releases did not arrive until 2009: GPS navigation for smartphones. Customers quickly realized this feature’s usefulness for their phones since it allowed them to explore new areas easily and without fear.
Google Buys YouTube
Although Google made several unsuccessful attempts to purchase YouTube in 2006, including an offer of $1.65 billion, other industry titans such as Yahoo and Viacom also made similar attempts.
Luckily, Google signed a contract with YouTube, and the connection that followed with a Google account was advantageous to both of them. Even while Google could route the majority of traffic from video-sharing websites to itself, the latter was able to effectively use Google’s enormous resources, which were badly needed by the fledgling business.
Google And Chrome
Google recruited Mozilla Firefox developers in September 2008 to assist in realizing a particular vision: creating a dependable search engine by utilizing open-source technologies to create a web browser that is both fast and stable. This marked the launch of the Google Chrome web browser, which shot to the top of the global online browser market for computers and mobile devices in just four years.
Chrome’s development began eleven years ago. It has now effectively emerged as the company’s main engine, transforming Google Search into the most useful and well-liked program.
2010 — The Good And The Bad For Google
Google didn’t have the best of starts in 2010 when it was horrified to learn of a very sophisticated phishing attempt on the Chinese website’s internal infrastructure. As a result, the business was obliged to quickly change course even though it knew doing so would be dangerous. However, these problems soon beset Alphabet’s subsidiary, and Google was eventually barred from China.
A few months later, Oracle decided to sue Google over Android. The case is still pending eight years later as Google tries to get the Supreme Court to hear an appeal.
Nevertheless, by the end of 2010, Google released seven Toyota Priuses with amazing characteristics that would astound people worldwide.
Launching Google’s Operating System
The following few years were crucial for Google since it released many innovative goods, services, and software that would eventually astound its users. One of the major releases of 2011 was Chrome OS, an open-source platform created by Google to house web software.
Google soon released Chromebooks, still widely used and a major force in the education sector.
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Summing Up Google from 2015
Google entered the hardware market again in 2016 with its first Android-powered Pixel Phone, following the Chromebook. From 2016 until 2023, eight Google Pixel smartphones were released, with that one being the first. Google’s first foldable smartphone is the Pixel Fold, which was most recently announced.
The first smartphone to use Google Assistant was the Pixel 1. It also boasted an excellent camera, better than the snappers on many other phones in 2016. Despite being a smaller competitor in the mobile device market than Apple, Google’s Pixel smartphones are starting to look like a more appealing option than iPhones.
2022 Till Now+: Pichai Declares A Code Red
From 2022 to 2023, the well-liked ChatGPT AI chatbot grew quickly and alarmed Google. At the end of 2022, Pichai is said to have issued a Google code red to build an immediate response to ChatGPT. Thus, it appears that Google has made AI a top focus.
Google responded to ChatGPT first with Search Generative Experience, its experimental AI-powered search engine. You can register right now to be among the first to try it. For more information on getting on the Search Generative Experience waitlist, see our guide on accessing it.
Final Thoughts
Without question, Google (now an Alphabet Inc. subsidiary) has advanced significantly since Page and Brin set up camp in Wojcicki’s garage back in 1998. Based on market value, it is currently rated among the world’s most valuable corporations, behind Apple, Microsoft, and Aramco.
Known for creating the most popular web browser, video-sharing website, and search engine in the world, Google has been the most significant internet corporation in history.
Meta Description- Discover the evolution of Google from its founding in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin to launching groundbreaking services like Gmail and acquiring YouTube, up to its recent focus on Gemini in response to competitors like ChatGPT.
