In the past quarter-century, Google has evolved from a dorm room concept to a global internet powerhouse. The brainchild of Stanford University students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google began as a search engine named BackRub. Today, it is one of the most valuable and influential companies worldwide, with products like Gmail and Google Search used by billions.

The journey of Google, now under the umbrella of parent company Alphabet, is marked by significant milestones. The company received its first funding of $100,000 from Sun Microsystems co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim in 1998. By 2000, it had become the default search engine for Yahoo, and launched AdWords, a cornerstone of its business model.

Google’s growth continued with the launch of Gmail in 2004, Google Maps in 2005, and the acquisition of YouTube in 2006. The company also ventured into the mobile market with the acquisition of Android in 2005 and the launch of the first Android phone in 2008.

Google’s influence expanded further with the acquisition of Motorola Mobility in 2011, the launch of Google Glass in 2012, and the creation of Alphabet in 2015. Despite facing fines from the European Commission for violating neutrality and anti-competitive practices, Google’s sales surpassed $100 billion for the first time in 2018.

In recent years, Google has continued to innovate and expand, acquiring Fitbit in 2019 and launching an AI-powered chatbot, Bard, in 2023. Despite a few setbacks, including a significant drop in Alphabet shares due to a factual error in Bard’s demo, Google remains a dominant force in the tech industry.

Read more at Reuters.