The Journey of Google

Larry Page and Sergey Brin, both doctoral students at Stanford University, had no idea that they were about to lay the foundations of a revolution in the world of the internet. Their goal was to make the internet accessible to a wider audience, facilitate easier access to information, and make the internet more user-friendly.

The Early Days of the Company

The duo began working within the confines of their dorm rooms, and their projects unexpectedly started to grow rapidly. As a result, they needed more space, and this is when they moved to Google’s first official workspace. However, this space was not a luxurious office building or a high-tech laboratory; it was a garage. This rented garage became Google’s first official headquarters. On September 27, 1998, Google Inc. was officially established. This date marked the official beginning of Google as a company (though it’s worth noting that the domain “Google.com” was registered by ICANN on September 15, 1997).

Google’s ascent went beyond being just a technology company. Today, billions of people rely on Google. The company has become an integral part of our lives, encompassing everything from searching for information to communication, business, and entertainment.

Google’s societal impact extends beyond technological advancements. It has influenced various aspects of life, from business to education, communication, and cultural interactions. Google has made access to information more democratic, facilitated global communication, transformed the business world, and made education more accessible. Google has made people’s lives easier and shrunk the world.

The foundation of Google’s idea was based on analyzing links to determine the importance of web pages. Originally named “Backrub,” this idea was a system that evaluated “backlinks” to measure the value of a website. However, the term “Google” began to be used instead of “Backrub.”

The name “Google” is derived from the mathematical expression representing a “1” followed by 100 consecutive zeros. This symbolizes Google’s ability to process and provide vast amounts of information.

Google Between 2006 and 2015

Google expanded its horizons beyond being just a search engine. Over the years, it reached several significant milestones. In 2006, Google introduced Google Translate, making it easier for people to translate one language quickly into another. Initially, this feature was limited to Arabic and English, but now Google Translate works in over 100 languages. Two years later, Google brought its mobile app to the iPhone, introducing features like autocomplete and “My Location.” In the same year, it introduced Google Voice, allowing users to make calls using their voices. Google also launched Google Chrome, a fast and user-friendly internet browser.

In 2010, Google introduced the Google Nexus One, the first smartphone with the Android operating system. A year later, Google+ started as the company’s social media platform but was eventually closed due to lack of success. In 2012, Google launched Google Drive, a cloud storage service.

In 2013, Google announced Google Glass, smart glasses that could be pre-ordered, and at the same time, the autonomous vehicle technology was starting to disrupt the world. A year later, Google capitalized on this trend by founding Waymo, a company dedicated to autonomous driving technologies.

2015 and the Change in Company Structure

In 2015, the company’s structure changed, and it began operating under a holding company called Alphabet Inc. A year later, Google introduced Google Assistant, an AI-based virtual assistant. It was integrated with the Google Home smart speaker. In 2017, Google launched the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL smartphones. In the same year, Google introduced Google Lens, a feature that recognizes objects and turns them into search queries.

Google announced Google Duplex, a service that could make phone calls using artificial intelligence, in 2018. In 2019, Google introduced Stadia, a cloud-based game streaming service.

While some of these services were eventually discontinued, they served as stepping stones to shape the company’s current policies.

2020 and Beyond

In 2020, the world was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, which forced a shift to remote work. Google offered many of its digital services for free during this time. A year later, Google began working in the field of artificial intelligence. It introduced “LaMDA,” a natural language processing model, at the Google I/O event. In the same year, Google accelerated its efforts in quantum computing and developed a quantum computer called Sycamore.

The Company Today: Artificial Intelligence

In 2023, Google focused on generative artificial intelligence-based experiences such as Google Bard and PaLM 2. This move was seen as “the final destination of Google’s technological evolution and a step towards the future.” In other words, it provided an answer to how Google would play a role in the future.

The company is currently centered around artificial intelligence and is in serious competition with other tech giants such as Microsoft, Nvidia, and Amazon in this field. We will eagerly await Google’s future developments.

Interesting Facts About Google

• Google’s first office was operated from a garage owned by Susan Wojcicki, who would later become the CEO of Google’s online video-sharing platform, YouTube.
• In 2006, the word “Google” was added to a dictionary as a verb, meaning “to use the Google search engine to obtain information about something or someone on the World Wide Web.”