Google recently celebrated its 13th birthday. The news sparked various tales around our office of what we were each up to in the late 90s when the Google brand was born…
What we all acknowledged was at the time Google registered on each of our radars, none of us had any inkling of how significant words like ‘search’ would become.
In terms of how fast things move in the digital world, it’s surprising Google is only celebrating 13 years. Maybe digital years are like dog years and we need to multiply that number by seven or some other enigmatic integer? In any case, the search giant has made the symbolic move from child to adolescent.
If Google’s formative years were about pioneering first steps, overcoming teething troubles and domineering the search playground, its teens look set to bring a raft of new social ventures. While frolicking with its peers may not be on the cards just yet, at least not in the same way that Apple and Facebook’s relationship has recently been warming up, the search supremo has nevertheless got its sights set on the social network scene. Indeed further news of Google Plus traffic increasing 1269 per cent suggests the likes of hangouts and circles will play a key role in its future growth. Alongside this social experimentation, the tech titan is also hoping to boost its street cred among start-ups with its multi-million pound technology community centre opening in the heart of East London next year.
Google’s latest efforts essentially boil down to having the most mates, the coolest clobber and thinking itself the centre of the universe. And if that’s not your typical teenager, I don’t know what is?
