Alphabet
Alphabet is a holding company that engages in the business of acquisition and operation of different companies. Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is a tech giant and one of the world's largest technology conglomerates with over $2 trillion in market capitalization. The company operates in a wide variety of industries, including internet search and advertising, cloud computing, hardware, software, and biotechnology. Its core businesses include Google Search, YouTube, Google Cloud, Google Ads, Google Maps, and Android. Alphabet Inc. also owns several subsidiaries, including Waymo, Verily, and X.
Alphabet is the parent company of Google. It was founded as a search engine company in 1998 under the name Google Inc.
Since then, Google has become the world's most popular search engine, owning 91% of the global search market.
Alphabet offers various products and platforms in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific, Canada, and Latin America.
It reorganized in 2015 and created the holding company named Alphabet. Today, Alphabet holds Google, its largest subsidiary, and several other companies.
CORE BUSINESSES
Google Services.
Provides products and services, including ads, Android, Chrome, devices, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Photos, Google Play, Search, and YouTube.
Google Cloud.
Offers infrastructure, cybersecurity, databases, analytics, AI, and other services; Google Workspace that include cloud-based communication and collaboration tools for enterprises, such as Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, and Meet; and other services for enterprise customers.
Other Bets.
Sells healthcare-related and internet services.
MAJOR ACQUISITIONS
Mandiant.
Cybersecurity company acquired in 2022 for roughly $5.4 billion. The company was folded into Google’s cloud computing business to help better secure cloud data.
Fitbit.
Wearable fitness devices and app acquired in 2021 for $2.1 billion. The company's products include smartwatches, armband fitness trackers, a digital fitness tracking application, and related gear, accessories, and services.
Looker.
Business intelligence software and data analytics company acquired for $2.6 billion. Looker helps companies to easily extract and analyze data.
Nest.
Smart-home products company acquired for $3.2 billion. Google acquired Nest and has since merged it with Google's Home division to create Google Nest, which offers a range of smart home products, including security alarm systems, security cameras, Wifi routers, and home assistance devices.
Waze.
A mobile navigation app acquired for $966 million. Acquiring Waze eliminated competition; Google also saw Waze's traffic-updating features as novel enhancements to Google Maps.
DoubleClick.
Ad management and ad-serving solutions platform acquired for $3.1 billion. In 2018, Google retired the DoubleClick brand name and folded it into Google's AdWords brand, making Google Ads the central tool for advertisers.
YouTube.
Online video-sharing platform acquired for $1.6 billion. YouTube has grown into a significant source of Alphabet's ad revenue, while also generating revenue through premium and YouTube TV subscriptions.