Alphabet first crossed a $1 trillion market capitalization on January 16, 2020.
Alphabet is the parent company created during Google’s 2015 corporate restructuring. Google remained the group’s largest business, while Alphabet provided a structure for other activities, including research projects and investments outside the core search and advertising operation.
Alphabet’s valuation was powered chiefly by Google Search, YouTube, and advertising technology. Google Cloud also became an increasingly important business, while Android and the Chrome browser strengthened the company’s wider digital ecosystem.
A common mix-up is answering Google rather than Alphabet. Google is Alphabet’s principal subsidiary and consumer brand, but the publicly traded parent company whose shares determine the market capitalization is Alphabet Inc.