Google's 25th Anniversary: A Journey Of Search, Innovation, And Surprises

Technology giant Google is celebrating its 25th anniversary today, September 27th, with a special doodle that traces the evolution of its iconic logos throughout the years. In addition to this visual tribute, Google has unveiled a delightful confetti Easter egg that surprises users whenever they perform a birthday-related search.

"Twenty-five years ago, we launched Google Search to help you find answers to questions big and small. Since then, billions of people have turned to our products to do just that—to satisfy their curiosity," Google reflected on this significant milestone.

Over the past quarter-century, Google has undergone significant transformations and introduced numerous innovations to its search platform. Among its notable achievements, in 2001, the company introduced Google Images , enabling users to search for images. The same year also saw the introduction of the "Did You Mean" feature, which prompted users to correct their spelling errors.

In 2006, Google unveiled the groundbreaking Google Translate feature, simplifying language translation across more than 100 languages. Initially, it was limited to translating between Arabic and English, but it has since evolved into a powerful multilingual tool.

The year 2008 marked the launch of Google's mobile app on the iPhone , incorporating features like autocomplete and "my location." Additionally, Google Voice was introduced, allowing users to search by voice—an especially popular feature in India, where daily voice queries are nearly twice the global average.

In 2017, Google introduced Google Lens , showcasing its advanced machine-learning capabilities by recognising objects and converting them into search queries. Today, Google Lens handles over 12 billion visual searches per month.

Google has also prioritised user convenience with features like Hum to Search, enabling users to hum a song stuck in their head for a quick identification, a feature that was enhanced in 2020 using machine learning expertise.

Now, in 2023, Google is shifting its focus towards generative AI-powered experiences with Google Bard and its LLMs like PaLM 2, with the upcoming Gemini project promising even more exciting developments in the world of artificial intelligence.