Alphabet operates Google and became a major market-cap company after reorganizing under a new parent in 2015.
Google’s founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, announced Alphabet in August 2015. The restructuring made Alphabet the holding company for Google and several other businesses, while Google retained its search, advertising, maps, YouTube, and Android operations.
The purpose was to separate Google’s core internet products from longer-term projects such as health technology, autonomous vehicles, and research ventures. Sundar Pichai became Google’s CEO during the reorganization, while Larry Page became Alphabet’s CEO and Sergey Brin became its president.
Alphabet’s market capitalization is mostly associated with Google’s enormous advertising business, though cloud computing and subscriptions also contribute. A common mistake is to call Alphabet simply “Google” in corporate descriptions. Google remains the best-known operating company, but Alphabet is the publicly traded parent whose shares investors buy.