Google is an American technology company founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, best known for developing the world's dominant internet search engine and a wide range of other digital products.
Two graduate students trying to solve a fairly narrow academic problem — ranking web pages by how many other pages linked to them — ended up building the default way most of the world now finds information.
Born from a Stanford Research Project
Page and Brin developed Google's foundational search algorithm while graduate students at Stanford University, focusing on ranking web pages based on the number and quality of other pages linking to them — a significant technical improvement over existing search engines at the time.
A Name from Mathematics
The company's name derives from "googol," a mathematical term for the number one followed by 100 zeros, reflecting the founders' ambition to organize the seemingly infinite amount of information available on the internet.
Far Beyond Search
Google has expanded dramatically beyond its original search function, developing widely used products including Gmail, Google Maps, and the Android mobile operating system, which now powers the majority of smartphones worldwide.
An Advertising Powerhouse
The company's digital advertising business became one of the most profitable in the world, generating the vast majority of Google's revenue by connecting advertisers with users based on search queries and browsing behavior.
Restructuring Under Alphabet
Google restructured under a parent holding company called Alphabet Inc. in 2015, allowing various ventures, including autonomous vehicle research and life sciences projects, to operate with greater independence from the core search and advertising business.
