Podcast Guide
Cover art for Acquired

Ben Gilbert

Acquired

Google Part II: Alphabet

Published
August 26, 2025
Duration
4h 10m
Summary source
description
Last updated
Apr 17, 2026

Discusses business, investing, technology.

Summary

In its first six years from 1998 to 2004, Google built one of the greatest products of all time (and certainly the greatest business of all time) with Search. Then in its next six years from 2005 to 2011, Google built seven (!) more billion+ user products: Gmail, Maps, Drive and Docs, YouTube, Chrome, Android, and Photos — all either started from scratch …

Show notes

In its first six years from 1998 to 2004, Google built one of the greatest products of all time (and certainly the greatest business of all time) with Search. Then in its next six years from 2005 to 2011, Google built seven (!) more billion+ user products: Gmail, Maps, Drive and Docs, YouTube, Chrome, Android, and Photos — all either started from scratch internally or acquired as startups that were still in their infancy. This six-year period of wild innovation STILL stands unmatched in technolo

Themes

  • business
  • investing
  • technology