Alphabet owns Google, whose subsidiary developed the Android operating system.
Alphabet Inc. was created in 2015 as a restructuring of Google. Google became the main subsidiary, while the new parent company separated the search and advertising business from projects such as life sciences, autonomous vehicles, and other experimental ventures.
Android began as a separate company founded in 2003 and was acquired by Google in 2005. It became a major mobile operating system used by manufacturers around the world. Google Search, YouTube, Google Cloud, and advertising remain central parts of Alphabet’s business.
Alphabet is often confused with Google because Google is the best-known brand and the principal operating company. However, the publicly traded parent is Alphabet. Its market capitalization therefore represents investors’ valuation of the whole corporate structure, not just the search engine or Android.