Google Celebrates 27 Years Since Founding by Larry Page and Sergey Brin
Google marks its 27th anniversary, commemorating its founding by Larry Page and Sergey Brin on September 4, 1998, and reflecting on its transformation from a university project to a global tech powerhouse.
Google, the search engine giant, celebrated its 27th anniversary this week, marking the day in 1998 when founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin officially established the company in Menlo Park, California. What began as a research project at Stanford University has evolved into one of the most influential technology companies in the world, impacting how billions access and organize information.
From Stanford Dorms to Silicon Valley
Page and Brin, then PhD students at Stanford, first collaborated in 1996 to develop a new kind of search engine. Their project, initially called "BackRub," was designed to rank web pages not just by keyword matches but by analyzing the number and quality of links pointing to each site. This innovative approach, known as PageRank, set Google apart from existing search engines and quickly attracted attention from investors and the tech community.
Early backers included Andy Bechtolsheim, co-founder of Sun Microsystems, who famously wrote a $100,000 check before Google was even incorporated. The company officially launched on September 4, 1998, with its name derived from "googol," a mathematical term for the number 1 followed by 100 zeros, signifying the founders' mission to organize vast amounts of information.
Explosive Growth and Lasting Impact
Within just a few years, Google’s user base surged as it became the default search engine for major web portals, including Yahoo!. By the early 2000s, daily search queries skyrocketed from hundreds of thousands to billions. The company’s rapid expansion was marked by a series of strategic acquisitions—such as YouTube, Android, and DoubleClick—that diversified its offerings beyond search, reshaping digital advertising, mobile technology, and online video.
Google’s influence has not been without controversy. The company has faced antitrust scrutiny in the United States and Europe, and its involvement in military contracts and data privacy practices has sparked debate among policymakers and the public. Despite these challenges, Google’s core mission—to make the world’s information universally accessible and useful—remains at the heart of its operations.
Today, Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., a holding company created in 2015 to oversee its expanding portfolio. The company’s leadership, once dominated by its founders, has transitioned to new executives, but Page and Brin’s vision continues to shape its direction. As Google enters its 28th year, it stands as a testament to the enduring power of innovation born from academic curiosity and entrepreneurial risk-taking.