Alphabet Inc. is an American multinational conglomerate that was founded on October 2, 2015, as a holding company for Google and several other subsidiaries. The company is headquartered in Mountain View, California, and is led by CEO Sundar Pichai. Alphabet is the parent company of Google, one of the world's largest and most profitable technology companies. The company is primarily involved in internet-related businesses such as search engines, online advertising, cloud computing, and software.
Google, the main subsidiary of Alphabet, is a search engine company that provides various online services such as Google Search, Google Maps, YouTube, Google Play, and Gmail. The company generates most of its revenue from advertising and operates one of the world's largest advertising networks. Alphabet's other subsidiaries include Nest, a smart home technology company; Waymo, a self-driving car company; and Verily, a life sciences company. The company has also invested in various start-ups through its venture capital arm, Google Ventures.
Alphabet went public on August 19, 2004, as Google Inc. and was listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. The company's initial public offering (IPO) raised $1.67 billion, making it one of the largest IPOs in US history at the time. In 2015, Google restructured itself into Alphabet Inc. as part of a broader effort to separate its core internet business from its other ventures, such as its life sciences and self-driving car units.
Since going public, Alphabet has become one of the most valuable companies in the world, with a market capitalization of over $1 trillion as of May 2023. The company has consistently generated strong revenue growth and profitability, and has expanded into new markets and technologies. However, it has also faced increasing scrutiny from regulators and lawmakers over issues such as antitrust, data privacy, and misinformation on its platforms. Despite these challenges, Alphabet remains a dominant player in the technology industry and continues to invest heavily in innovation and expansion.