verg ence of oppo site s th at g av e bi rt h to G oo gl e, t he t wo firms — normally fi erce ly competitive, but seeing eye-to-eye on the val ue o f th is new investmen t — both took seats on t he boa rd o f di re ct or s. M ik e Moritz of Sequoia and John Doerr of Klei ner Pe rk in s — wh o be tw ee n th em h ad h el pe d gr ow S un M ic ro sytems, Intuit, Amaz on, and Yahoo! — joined Ram Shriram, CEO of Jung lee, at the ping pong ta ble that served as f orma l bo ar dr oo m fu rn itur e. I n sh or t order, key hires began to fill t he company 's m od es t of fi ce s. O mi d Ko rd es ta ni l ef t Ne ts ca pe t o accept a posit ion as vice pres iden t of business development and sa les, and Urs Hölzle was hired away from UC Santa Barba ra a s vi ce p re si de nt o f engineering. It quickly became obv ious t ha t mo re s pa ce w as n ee de d. A t on e po in t th e of fi ce b ec am e so cramped that employees co uldn 't stand up from their desks wit hout others tucking their chairs in first. The gri dl oc k wa s al le vi at ed w it h th e move to the Googleplex, Google's c urre nt h ea dq ua rt er s in M ou nt ai n Vi ew , Ca li fo rn ia . An d tu ck ed away in one c orne r of the two-story struc tu re, th e Google kernel continued to gro w — attracting staff and cli ents and d ra wi ng a tt en ti on f ro m user s an d th e press. AOL/Netscape se le ct ed G oo gl e as i ts w eb s ea rc h se rv ic e an d he lp ed p us h tr af fi c levels past 3 mi llion searches per day. Cl earl y, Google had evolved. What ha d be en a college research pr ojec t wa s no w a re al c om pa ny o ff er in g a serv ice that was in great demand . O n Se pt em be r 21 , 19 99 , th e beta l ab el c am e of f th e we bs it e. Still Google continued to expand. The Italian portal Virg ilio signed on as a client, as did V irgi n Net, the UK's le adin g on li ne e nt er ta in me nt guide. The spate of recogni tion tha t fo ll ow ed i nc lu de d a Te ch ni ca l Excell en ce A wa rd f or I nn ov at io n in Web App lica ti on Dev elop ment from PC Magazine and incl usion in s ev eral "best of" lists, cu lmin ating with Google's ap pe ar an ce o n Ti me m ag az ine's Top Ten Best Cyber te ch l is t fo r 19 99 . A t th e Go og le pl ex, a unique com pa ny c ul ture w as e volving. To ma xi mi ze t he f le xi bi li ty o f th e wo rk s pa ce , la rg e ru bber exe rc is e ba ll s were repur po se d as highly mobile o ff ice ch ai rs i n an o pe n en vironment fr ee o f cubicl e wa ll s. W hile c om pu te rs o n th e de sk to ps were fully po we re d, t he d es ks t he mselve s we re w oo de n do or s he ld u p by pairs o f sawh or se s. L av a la mp s be ga n sp ro ut in g like mul ti -h ue d mu shro om s. L arge d og s ro am ed t he h al ls — a mo ng t he m Yo sh ka , a ma ss iv e bu t ge ntle L eo nb er ge r. A ft er a r ig orous review process , Ch arli e Ay ers was hi re d as c om pa ny c he f, b ri ng in g wi th h im a n ec le ct ic r ep er to ir e of h ea lt h- co ns ci ous reci pe s he d ev el op ed w hi le c oo ki ng f or t he G ra te fu l De ad . Se ct io ns o f th e pa rk in g lo t we re r op ed o ff f or t wi ce -w ee kl y roller hockey ga mes. L arry and S er ge y le d we ek ly T GI F me et in gs i n th e op en s pa ce a mo ng t he d es ks , wh ic h ea si ly a cc om mo da te d th e co mp an y' s 60 -o dd e mp lo ye es . T he i nf or ma l at mo sp he re b re d bo th c ol le gi al it y an d an a cc el er at ed e xc ha ng e of ideas. Google staff ers made many increm en ta l im pr ov em en ts t o th e se ar ch e ng in e it se lf a nd a dd ed s uc h en ha nc em en ts a s th e Go og le D ir ec to ry ( ba se d on N et sc ap e' s Op en D ir ec to ry P ro je ct ) an d th e ab il it y to s ea rc h vi a wi re le ss d ev ic es . Go og le also began thinking g loba lly, with the in tr od uc ti on o f te n la ng ua ge v er si on s fo r us er s wh o pr ef er re d to s ea rc h in t he ir n at iv e to ng ue s. We l ov e yo u, G oo gl e us er s! Go og le 's f ea tu re s an d pe rf or ma nc e at tr ac te d ne w us er s at a n as to un di ng r at e. T he b road app eal of Google search b ec am e ap pa re nt w he n th e si te w as a wa rd ed b ot h a We bb y Aw ar d an d a Pe op le 's V oi ce A wa rd f or t ec hn ic al a ch ie ve me nt i n Ma y 20 00 . Se rg ey 's a nd L ar ry 's f iv e- wo rd a cc ep ta nc e sp ee ch : "W e lo ve y ou , Go og le u se rs !" T he f ollowing mon th, Google officia ll y be ca me t he w or ld 's l ar ge st s ea rc h en gi ne w it h it s in tr od uc ti on o f a bi ll io n- pa ge i nd ex — t he f ir st t im e so m uc h of t he w eb 's c on te nt h ad b ee n ma de a va il ab le i n a se ar ch ab le f or ma t. Th ro ug h ca re fu l ma rs hall ing of its r esou rc es, Google had a vo id ed t he n ee d fo r addi ti on al r ou nd s of f un di ng b ey on d it s or ig in al v en tu re r ou nd . Al re ad y cl ie nt s we re s ig ni ng u p to u se G oo gl e' s se ar ch t ec hn ol og y on t he ir o wn s it es . Wi th t he l au nc h of a k ey wo rd -t ar gete d advert is in g prog ram, G oo gle adde d an ot he r re ve nu e st ream t ha t be ga n mo vi ng t he c om pa ny i nt o th e bl ac k. B y mi d- 20 00 , th es e ef fo rt s we re b eg in ni ng t o sh ow r ea l re su lt s. O n Ju ne 2 6, G oo gl e an d Ya ho o! a nn ou nc ed a p ar tn er sh ip t ha t so li di fi ed t he c ompa ny's r ep ut at ion — no t ju st a s a pr ov id er o f gr ea t te ch no lo gy , bu t as a s ub st an ti al b us in es s an swer in g 18 m il li on u se r qu er ie s ev er y da y. I n th e mo nt hs t ha t fo ll ow ed , pa rt ne rs hi p de al s we re a nn ou nc ed o n al l fr on ts , wi th C hi na 's l ea di ng p orta l Ne tE as e an d NE C' s BI GL OB E po rt al i n Ja pa n bo th a dd in g Go og le s ea rc h to t he ir s it es . Th e Go ogle T oo lb ar To e xt en d th e po we r of i ts k ey wo rd -t ar ge te d ad ve rt is in g to s ma ll er b us in es se s, G oo gl e in tr od uc ed A dW or ds , a se lf -s er vi ce a d pr ogram th at cou ld b e ac ti va te d on li ne w it h a cr ed it c ar d in a m at te r of m in ut es . An d in l at e 20 00 , to enhance u se rs ' po we r to s ea rc h fr om a ny wh er e on t he w eb , Go og le i nt ro du ce d th e Go og le T oo lb ar . Th is i nn ov at iv e br owse r pl ug -i n ma de i t po ss ib le to us e Go og le s ea rc h wi th ou t vi si ti ng t he G oo gl e ho me page , ei th er u si ng t he t oo lb ar 's s ea rc h bo x or rig ht -c li ck in g on t ex t wi th in a w eb p ag e, a s we ll a s en ab li ng t he h ig hl ig ht in g of k ey wo rd s in s ea rc h results. The G oo gl e To ol ba r wo ul d pr ov e enormo us ly p op ul ar a nd h as s in ce b ee n do wn lo ad ed b y mill io ns o f us er s. A s 20 00 e nd ed , Go og le w as alrea dy h an dl in g mo re t ha n 10 0 mi ll io n se ar ch q ue ri es a d ay — a nd c on ti nu ed t o lo ok f or n ew w ay s to connect peo pl e wi th t he i nf or ma ti on t he y need ed , wh en ev er a nd w he re ve r th ey n ee de d it . Th ey r ea ch ed o ut f ir st t o a po pu la ti on w it h a ne ve r- endi ng n ee d fo r kn ow le dg e — st ud en ts , ed uc at or s, a nd r es ea rc he rs — p ay in g ho ma ge t o Go og le 's a ca de mi c roots by o ff er in g fr ee s ea rc h se rv ic es t o sc hools, u ni ve rs it ie s, a nd o th er e du ca ti on al i ns ti tu ti ons wo rl dw id e. R ea li zi ng t ha t pe op le a re n' t al wa ys a t th ei r de sk s wh en q ue st io ns p op i nt o th ei r he ad s, G oo gl e se t ou t to p ut w ir el es s se ar ch i nt o as man y ha nd s as p os si bl e. T he f ir st h al f of 2001 sa w a se ri es o f pa rt ne rs hi ps a nd i nn ov at io ns tha t wo ul d br in g Go og le s ea rc h to a w or ld wi de a ud ie nc e of m ob il e us er s. W ir el es s In te rn et u se rs i n As ia , Ja pa ne se u se rs o f i- mo de m ob il e ph on es , Spri nt P CS , Ci ng ul ar , an d AT &T W ir el es s cu st om er s, a nd o th er w ir el es s de vi ce u se rs t hr ou gh ou t th e wo rl d ga in ed u nt et he re d ac ce ss t o th e 1. 6 bi ll io n we b do cu me nt s in G oo gl e' s gr ow in g in de x. Ac co rd in g to G oo gl e lo re , co mp an y fo un de rs L ar ry P ag e an d Se rg ey B ri n we re n ot t er ri bl y fo nd o f ea ch o ther w he n th ey f ir st m et a s St an fo rd U ni ve rs it y gr ad ua te s tu de nt s in c om pu te r sc ie nc e in 1 99 5. L ar ry w as a 2 4- ye ar -o ld U ni ve rs it y of M ic hi ga n al um nu s on a w ee ke nd v is it ; Se rg ey , 23 , wa s am on g a gr ou p of stu de nt s as si gn ed t o sh ow h im a ro un d. T he y ar gu ed a bo ut e ve ry t op ic t he y di sc us se d. T he ir s tr on g op in ions a nd d iv er ge nt v ie wp oi nt s wo ul d ev en tu al ly f in d co mm on g ro un d in a u ni qu e ap pr oa ch t o so lv in g on e of c om pu ti ng 's b ig ge st c ha ll en ge s: r etri ev in g re le va nt i nf or ma ti on f ro m a ma ss iv e se t of d at a. B y Ja nu ar y of 1 99 6, L ar ry a nd S er ge y ha d begu n co ll ab or at io n on a s ea rc h en gi ne c al le d Ba ck Ru b, n am ed f or i ts u ni qu e ab il it y to a na ly ze t he " ba ck l in ks " po in ti ng t o a gi ve n we bs it e. Larry , wh o ha d al wa ys e nj oy ed t in ke ri ng w it h ma ch in er y an d ha d ga in ed s om e no to ri et y fo r bu il di ng a wor king p ri nt er o ut o f Le go ™ br ic ks , to ok o n th e ta sk o f cr ea ti ng a n ew k in d of s er ve r en vi ro nm en t th at u se d lo w- en d PC s in st ea d of b ig e xp ensive m ac hi ne s. A ff li ct ed b y th e pe re nn ia l sh or ta ge o f ca sh com mon to g ra du at e st ud en ts e ve rywh ere, the pair to ok t o ha un ti ng t he d ep ar tm en t' s lo ad in g do ck s in h op es o f tr ac ki ng d ow n ne wl y ar ri ve d comp ut er s th at t he y co uld bo rr ow f or t heir network. A ye ar l at er , th ei r un iq ue a pp ro ac h to l ink an alysis was earni ng B ackRub a gro wi ng reputation among thos e wh o ha d seen i t. Buz z ab ou t th e ne w se ar ch t ec hn ol og y be ga n to b ui ld a s wo rd s pr ead ar ound campu s. L arry and S erge y co ntinue d working to perfect the ir technology throug h the first half of 1998. Following a path that would become a key tenet of the Google way, th ey b ou gh t a te ra by te o f di sk s at b ar ga in p ri ce s an d built their own computer housings in Larry's dorm room, which became Googl e's first data cen ter. Meanwhile Sergey set up a business office, and the two began calling on potential partners wh o mi gh t wa nt t o li ce ns e a se ar ch t ec hn ol og y be tt er t han any then available. Despite the dotcom fever of the day, they had li ttle i nt er est in building a company of their own around the technology they had developed. Among those they calle d on w as f ri en d an d Ya ho o! found er D av id F il o. F il o agreed that their technology was solid, but encour aged Larry and Sergey to grow th e service themselves by starting a search engine company. "When it's fully developed and scalable," he t ol d th em , "l et 's t al k ag ai n." Othe rs w er e le ss i nt er ested in Google, as it was now known. One portal CEO told them, "As long as we'r e 80 per cent as good as our competitors, that's good enough. Our users don't really care about search." Unab le t o in te re st t he m aj or p or ta l pl ay er s of t he d ay , Larry and Sergey decided to make a go of it on their own . All they needed was a little cash to move out of the d orm — and to pay off the credit cards they had maxed out buying a terabyte of me mo ry . So t he y wr ot e up a b us in es s pl an , pu t th eir Ph.D. plans on hold, and went looking for an angel inv estor. Their first visit was with a friend o f a faculty memb er. Andy Bechtolsheim, one of the founders of Sun Microsystems, was us ed to ta ki ng t he l on g vi ew . On e lo ok a t th ei r de mo a nd h e knew Google had potential — a lot of potential. But though his interest had been piqued, he was pressed for time. As Sergey tells it, "We met him very early one morning on the porc h of a Sta nf or d fa cu lt y me mb er 's h om e in P al o Al to . We g ave him a quick demo. He had to run off somewhere, s o he said, 'Instead of us discussing all the details, why don't I just write you a check?' It was made out to Google Inc. and was fo r $1 00,000." T he i nv es tm en t cr ea te d a sm al l di le mm a. S in ce t here was no legal entity known as "Google Inc.," there was no way to deposit the check. It sat in Larry's desk drawer for a couple of weeks while he and Sergey scrambled to set up a co rporation an d lo ca te o th er f un de rs a mo ng f amily, friends, and acquaintances. Ultimately they brought in a total initial investment of almost $1 million. In September 1998, Google Inc. opened its door in Menlo Park, California. The d oor came with a remote c on tr ol , as i t wa s at tach ed t o th e garage of a friend who sublet space to the new corpora

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