Alphabet was created in 2015 when Google became a subsidiary of a new holding company.
The restructuring separated Google’s core internet businesses from several other projects. Google remained the largest subsidiary, while activities such as research and investment initiatives could operate with greater independence under Alphabet’s corporate structure.
Larry Page became Alphabet’s chief executive at the reorganization, and Sergey Brin became its president. Sundar Pichai later became Google’s CEO in 2015 and Alphabet’s CEO in 2019. Alphabet’s major businesses include Google Search, YouTube, Android, and Google Cloud.
Alphabet is frequently confused with Google because Google remains its most visible brand and operating company. Alphabet is the publicly traded parent corporation; Google is its principal subsidiary. The holding-company structure also helps distinguish Google’s advertising and internet operations from Alphabet’s other ventures.