Rebranding gives businesses an image refresh and a competitive edge in an era of dynamic markets. Google underwent it in 2015, creating the Alphabet we now know as its parent company. Its birth has made it possible for its divisions to operate independently. Each remains a part of the company while handling projects beyond the internet search engine, advertising, or making new Google Pixel phones.

Google remains the Google you know but falls under Alphabet as a subsidiary and the largest shareholder. It runs alongside Waymo, Calico, and other companies in its diverse portfolio. Learn more about Alphabet, who runs it, and other information in this post.

What is Alphabet, and is it the same as Google?

Alphabet is a multinational technology company that Larry Page and Sergey Brin created on October 2, 2015. Page and Brin are Google's co-founders and restructured the popular technology company to expand and diversify their operations.

Alphabet and Google aren't the same. The former became the parent company, and the latter is now a subsidiary of it. Google shares have also converted to Alphabet stock and retain their ticker symbols as GOOG (Class C shares without voting rights) and GOOGL (Class A common stock) on the NASDAQ stock exchange and other platforms.

According to Page in an open letter, the name Alphabet fits the rebranding as it's a "collection of letters that represent language, one of humanity's most important innovations, and is the core of how we index with Google search." It also reflects in the website address as abc.xyz.

Nothing about how you use Google's products and services has changed. The Workspace apps, YouTube, and Maps, among others, remain intact. The difference is in the corporate structure. Current and future subsidiaries under Alphabet have more autonomy to chase separate goals and enter new markets.

Also, Alphabet began generating financial reports in three segments on a quarterly basis. They report the profit and losses for Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets. Before that, there were reports for only Google and Other Bets. The segments operate as follows:

• Google services: Apps or products covering different aspects of technology, communication, and information. They also generate most of the company's revenue. For example, Google Search, Maps, Play, Search, Chrome, and YouTube.
• Google Cloud: Cloud-based data management tools for individuals and businesses. For example, BigQuery, Cloud Storage, Datastore, and Firebase.
• Other Bets: Subsidiaries and innovative projects not part of the company's core operations. For example, DeepMind and Waymo.

Google's overhaul makes the new company more accountable. Its introduction of the above divisions allows investors to monitor the financial performance of core services and startup projects. It also isolates the risk attached to each subsidiary, where one could fail or face roadblocks without affecting the others.

Who owns Alphabet?

Different shareholders and investors own Alphabet as it's a public-traded company. Google's co-founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, hold its Class B shares. It gives them 10 times more voting rights, even though they own a small percentage of the total shares. Class A shares have only one vote per share, while Class C has none.

Also, B shares aren't public. Hence, they don't exist on stock exchanges and allow the founders and CEOs to control the company's direction and decision-making. In terms of executive positions, Sergey Brin was Google's President from the company's founding date in 1998 until 2019.

Meanwhile, Page acted as the CEO three times. First, from the founding date until 2001, then from 2011 to 2015. That same year, he became Alphabet's CEO and handed his position at Google over to Product Chief Sundar Pichai. Both co-founders stepped down from their positions in 2019 but retained board membership and are still major shareholders.

Pichai is now Google and Alphabet's CEO. He was the brain behind ChromeOS and played a pivotal role in Nest's acquisition, among other achievements.

How many companies are under Alphabet?

Under the Alphabet umbrella are Google and Other Bets. Other Bets are companies still in their early or experimental stages and operate independently of the core internet services. Below are some of the subsidiaries Alphabet oversees:

• Google: Spearheads internet-related products and services, such as the search engine, Ads, Chrome browser, Translate, Assistant, Workspace apps, and more.
• Waymo: A self-driving car development company.
• Calico: The California Life Company is a biotechnological company that combats age-related diseases. It focuses on extending the human lifespan and improving the quality of life for older adults.
• CapitalG: Formerly known as Google Capital, CapitalG is an investment fund for late-stage technology companies due for expansion. Don't confuse it with Google Ventures, another investment fund for early-stage startups.
• Isomorphic Labs: A digital biology and drug discovery company using AI to make new medicines.
• DeepMind: It became part of Alphabet when Google acquired it in 2014. It's a research and AI development company that uses Deep reinforcement learning (Deep RL) to create smart solutions. Its notable works include the AlphaGo board game model that beat South Korean player Lee Sedol.
• Intrinsic: A robotics software and AI company working on automated industrial machines for businesses.
• Google Fiber: A service provider delivering high-speed broadband internet access through fiber-optic technology.
• Wing: A drone delivery service exploring the use of unmanned aerial machines to bring various goods to customers, such as food and medicine.

Alphabet is all about exploring endless possibilities

Google's transformation story embraces change and progress, an effort that may continue to bring financial success and tackle public scrutiny concerning user data privacy. Post-restructuring, the new company has raised mixed reactions from supporters and critics. Some say that it may be setting unrealistic goals in the name of pursuing new horizons.

One includes Google Fiber and Webpass, two services meant to deliver fast internet and phone privileges to you via a physical line. Already, the company has had to pause operations in numerous cities and made massive layoffs. Speculations are abuzz about low demand and financial setbacks. But innovation is risky, and only time will tell if Alphabet's moonshot projects succeed.