Google created Alphabet in a 2015 restructuring.
In August 2015, Google announced a new holding-company structure called Alphabet Inc. Google became a subsidiary focused on internet products and services, while other businesses, such as the life-sciences company later known as Verily, were placed under separate Alphabet subsidiaries. The restructuring was intended to give the different businesses greater independence and clearer financial reporting.
Google was founded in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, who developed a search engine while studying at Stanford University. Search advertising became the company’s central commercial engine, and Google later expanded into Android, YouTube, cloud computing, hardware, maps, and other services. Alphabet became the publicly traded parent company, so its market capitalization represents the combined value of the corporate group.
A frequent mistake is saying that Alphabet replaced Google as the consumer brand. Google Search, YouTube, Android, and many familiar products continued using the Google name. Alphabet is the corporate parent, while Google remains the largest and best-known operating subsidiary.