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Happy Birthday, Google! Today, September 27, the world’s most popular search engine turns 27. Over the years, Google has become an integral part of our daily lives, helping us find answers to almost anything. Whenever we’re in doubt, the advice is always the same: “Just Google it.” As we celebrate this milestone, let’s take a look at how Google started, who created it, what its name really means, who owns it today and how it is marking its 27th birthday. Who Created Google? Google’s story began in 1995 at Stanford University. Larry Page was considering joining the university for graduate school, and Sergey Brin, a student there, was assigned to show him around. Their first meeting wasn’t exactly smooth; they reportedly disagreed on nearly everything. Yet, by the next year, the two had joined forces. From their dorm rooms, Larry and Sergey started developing a search engine that ranked web pages based on links. Initially, they called it Backrub, but as the project grew, they renamed it Google. The search engine soon caught the attention of academics and investors alike. In August 1998, Sun co-founder Andy Bechtolsheim wrote them a $100,000 check, officially launching Google Inc. But the company celebrates its birthday on September 27, a date chosen in the mid-2000s to mark important internal milestones like the day it indexed a record number of web pages. What Does Google Mean? The colourful letters of Google are not an abbreviation. Instead, the name is a playful take on the word “Googol.” A Googol is a number so big it is almost hard to imagine. It is 1 followed by 100 zeros. The term was first coined in 1920 by Milton Sirotta, the nine-year-old nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner. The boy thought such a huge number deserved a fun name. When Page and his team were deciding on a name for their search engine, someone suggested “Googol.” Larry asked if the domain was available, but the word was misspelt as “Google.” He liked the sound of it, and the name stuck. In a way, one of the most powerful search engines in the world got its name because of a simple typo. Who Owns Google Today? Google is now a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc., a holding company created in 2015. Alphabet oversees Google’s core businesses and other experimental projects like Waymo and Verily. While Alphabet is publicly traded, Page, Brin, and a few insiders hold special shares that give them more voting power. Page and Brin remain board members, but day-to-day operations are run by Sundar Pichai, the CEO of both Google and Alphabet. How Is Google Celebrating Its Birthday? To mark its 27th birthday, Google has rolled out a special Doodle on its search homepage. This year, it brings back Google’s very first logo that offers users a nostalgic look at how the company started in 1998. Birthday Discounts And Offers Google Store is offering 20 per cent off on selected items with the code BIRTHDAY27. People can save on devices like Pixel 9, Pixel 9a, Pixel 9 Pro Fold, Pixel Buds Pro 2, Pixel Watch 3 and Fitbit Charge 6. Some purchases also come with store credit, exclusive stickers or wristlets. The discounts are available until September 28.
