<P> The Google company was launched in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin to market Google Search , which has become the most widely used web - based search engine . Page and Brin , students at Stanford University in California , developed a search algorithm -- at first known as `` BackRub '' -- in 1996 . The search engine soon proved successful and the expanding company moved several times , finally settling at Mountain View in 2003 . This marked a phase of rapid growth , with the company making its initial public offering in 2004 and quickly becoming one of the world 's largest media companies . The company launched Google News in 2002 , Gmail in 2004 , Google Maps in 2005 , Google Chrome in 2008 , and the social network known as Google+ in 2011 , in addition to many other products . In 2015 , Google became the main subsidiary of the holding company , Alphabet Inc . </P>
<P> The Google company was launched in 1998 by Larry Page and Sergey Brin to market Google Search , which has become the most widely used web - based search engine . Page and Brin , students at Stanford University in California , developed a search algorithm -- at first known as `` BackRub '' -- in 1996 . The search engine soon proved successful and the expanding company moved several times , finally settling at Mountain View in 2003 . This marked a phase of rapid growth , with the company making its initial public offering in 2004 and quickly becoming one of the world 's largest media companies . The company launched Google News in 2002 , Gmail in 2004 , Google Maps in 2005 , Google Chrome in 2008 , and the social network known as Google+ in 2011 , in addition to many other products . In 2015 , Google became the main subsidiary of the holding company , Alphabet Inc . </P>
when was google made available to the public
when was google made available to the public
in 1998
in 1998