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July 27, 2026Short & citedBlog
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Alphabet Inc.

Alphabet Inc.

Updated July 27, 20261 min readCited sources

Alphabet Inc. is an American technology holding company created in 2015 as part of a restructuring of Google. It is the parent company of Google and several other businesses, and its shares trade on Nasdaq under GOOGL and GOOG.

What it is

Alphabet Inc. is a publicly traded holding company headquartered in Mountain View, California. It was founded on October 2, 2015, by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, with Sundar Pichai as CEO. Alphabet owns Google as its main subsidiary, along with other businesses like Waymo, Verily, Calico, X, GV, and CapitalG.

Why it matters

Alphabet’s structure allows Google to focus on its core products—Search, YouTube, Android, Gmail, Maps, and Chrome—while other ventures operate independently. For Canadian readers, Alphabet’s services are widely used daily, and its stock is a common investment tracked on Canadian markets.

Key details

Alphabet trades on Nasdaq under two share classes: GOOGL and GOOG. Its market capitalisation is frequently reported and was recently around US$4.44 trillion, though this fluctuates. The company’s segments include Google Services, Google Cloud, and Other Bets.

In short

  • Alphabet was formed in 2015 as Google’s parent company.
  • It owns Google and other subsidiaries like Waymo and Verily.
  • Stock symbols are GOOGL and GOOG on Nasdaq.
  • Headquarters are in Mountain View, California.
Canadian angle

Alphabet is widely used by Canadian readers through Google Search, YouTube, Android, Gmail, Google Maps, and Google Cloud, and its stock is also followed by Canadian investors.

Quick questions

What is Alphabet Inc.?
Alphabet Inc. is an American technology holding company and the parent company of Google.
Is Google part of Alphabet?
Yes. Google is a subsidiary of Alphabet and remains the company’s largest business.
What is Alphabet's stock symbol?
Alphabet trades on Nasdaq under the symbols GOOGL and GOOG.

Sources

  1. Wikipediahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphabet_Inc.
    Supports: Founded in 2015 as a restructuring of Google; parent holding company of Google; headquartered in Mountain View; stock tickers GOOGL and GOOG.
  2. Encyclopaedia Britannicahttps://www.britannica.com/money/Alphabet-Inc
    Supports: Alphabet as Google’s parent company; history and business context; market capitalisation reference.
  3. Alphabethttps://abc.xyz/
    Supports: Alphabet describes itself as a collection of companies and identifies Google as the largest.
  4. Forbeshttps://www.forbes.com/companies/alphabet/
    Supports: Alphabet business segments and examples of subsidiaries such as Google, Waymo, Verily, CapitalG, GV, and X.
  5. TechTargethttps://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/Alphabet-Inc
    Supports: Alphabet became Google’s holding company; Google remains a subsidiary.