What is Google?
Google is the most popular search engine in the world and a fundamental force behind the internet as we know it. The company has been around since 1995 and now operates in numerous areas including hardware, cloud computing, advertising and software. Its reach has even made it a verb – when someone searches for information, they are said to be ‘googling’ it. The company’s original slogan “Don’t be evil” captures their intentionally unconventional approach to business and their spirit of doing things a little differently.
Google’s headquarters (known as the Googleplex) are located in Mountain View, California. Founded by Sergey Brin and Larry Page, the company began as a research project in their Stanford dorm room in 1995. They had some disagreements over their first meetings, but they struck up a partnership and worked together to create a search engine called Backrub that used links to rank pages.
Over the years, Google has grown its product portfolio by adding features and purchasing other companies. Its most famous products include search, email with Gmail, video sharing with YouTube, maps and navigation with Google Maps, and social networking with Google+. However, search remains the core of Google’s success and generates over half of its revenue.
Other services offered by Google include YouTube, Google Ads, and Google Analytics. The company also provides tools for website developers and webmasters like the Google Toolbar for Microsoft Windows Internet Explorer and the Firefox browser, and Google Site Search. Google also offers a number of free and paid online applications such as Google Docs, Google Earth, Google SketchUp, Google Talk, and the augmented reality app Tango.
The company also runs several data centers that house thousands of servers running its proprietary computer programs. These systems are designed to handle the massive amounts of data generated by users, with 11 global facilities housing over a petabyte of storage per day. Google also employs a number of staff to help maintain and expand these systems.
Despite this, Google is not immune to competition from other technology firms. Its search engine is still the dominant force in the market, but other players have emerged and are challenging its position. These competitors include Microsoft-backed OpenAI, whose large language model chatbot is quickly making inroads into Google’s territory, and autonomous car company Waymo, which is now operating publicly available self-driving cars in Phoenix.
In addition to its search engine and other internet services, Google offers a number of mobile phones, tablets, and computer hardware. In fact, Google smartphones and tablets currently hold a significant share of the mobile market. The company has also ventured into the physical world with Glass, a pair of smart glasses that are designed to give users access to augmented reality content. Other Google hardware includes the Nexus tablet line and Chromecast media streaming devices.
