Why Google Still Matters: A 2025 Look at Alphabet’s Market Power

Google in 2025: More Than Search

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably used Google today, maybe a dozen times. You’ve watched a YouTube video, typed something into the search bar, or backed up files to Google Drive. That’s the thing about Alphabet Inc. (Google’s parent company): it’s so woven into our daily lives that we almost forget it’s a business. A very big, very profitable one.

In 2025, Alphabet is more than just ads and search results. It’s becoming a tech conglomerate with serious ambitions in cloud computing, artificial intelligence, self-driving cars, and even healthcare. And yet, the company still generates most of its revenue in the same way it did a decade ago: by selling attention.

So the question isn’t whether Alphabet is important. It’s whether its next act will be as dominant as its first.

What Alphabet Owns

Alphabet’s empire is split into a few buckets:

• Google Search & YouTube – Still the cash cows.

• Google Cloud – The fastest-growing business line.

• Other Bets – Think Waymo (driverless cars), Verily (healthcare), and DeepMind (AI).

Roughly 75% of revenue still comes from advertising. That’s fine for now. However, the world is changing, and Alphabet is aware of this.

Why Alphabet Still Deserves Attention

1. Search Is a Fortress

Google controls nearly 90% of the global search market. That’s not a lead, it’s a monopoly in everything but legal terms. The data it collects fuels better ad targeting, which keeps advertisers spending. Even when the economy slows down, businesses don’t stop advertising; they just cut back on things that don’t work. Google still works.

2. Cloud Is Finally Paying Off

Google Cloud is third behind Amazon and Microsoft, but it’s growing faster and has finally turned profitable. That took years. Now it’s a legitimate second engine, especially with businesses racing to embed AI into everything.

3. AI Is the Real Game

This is where Alphabet wants to win. Gemini (its AI model) and DeepMind are starting to appear in products that people use. Unlike some competitors that build hype before substance, Alphabet tends to do the reverse. AI is already shaping how Google ranks pages, recommends videos, and writes emails for you. This isn’t future tech, it’s already baked into your day.

4. The Wild Bets

Waymo still isn’t profitable, and Verily won’t replace your GP anytime soon. But these are moonshots. If just one of them hits, it could be worth tens of billions of dollars. Alphabet has the cash to keep swinging.

5. $100 Billion in the Bank

That’s not an exaggeration. Alphabet has about $100 billion in cash and short-term investments. It also generates $80 billion in free cash flow annually. That kind of firepower enables it to acquire companies, fund research, or repurchase its stock.

Thinking Like an Investor

Reasons to Own It

• Cloud and AI are growing rapidly and could eventually surpass the advertising business.

• At ~25x forward earnings, it’s not overpriced by tech standards.

• The company is no longer dependent on just one thing.

• AI isn’t theoretical here; it’s productized and profitable.

• The balance sheet is bulletproof.

Reasons to Hold It

• The advertising business keeps generating revenue.

• Cloud growth adds a cushion.

• They’re quietly building the future of search, cars, and medicine.

• Buybacks keep shrinking the float.

• It’s hard to imagine Google getting disrupted overnight.

Reasons to Walk Away

• Regulators are circling. Antitrust lawsuits in the US and Europe could change how Alphabet operates.

• Microsoft, OpenAI, and Amazon aren’t sitting still in the cloud or AI space.

• Some of Alphabet’s side projects may never generate a profit.

• If the ad business slows, investors may start questioning that 25x multiple.

• Search is mature. It’s no longer going to grow at a 20% annual rate.

What Could Break the Story?

Alphabet’s biggest risks are political and competitive. Governments don’t like monopolies. And AI is still anyone’s game. OpenAI and Microsoft are moving fast. If Google’s bets in AI or cloud fall behind, or if regulators force a breakup, the story changes.

But here’s the flip side: most companies don’t have the luxury of risking billions on long-term bets. Alphabet does. And it has a track record of turning those bets into real businesses (YouTube, Android, Chrome… all started as side projects).

Valuation Check

Alphabet trades around 25 times forward earnings, which is reasonable if it continues to grow earnings at 10–12% per year, as analysts expect. If it starts monetising AI the way it did with mobile 10 years ago, there’s upside. A re-rating to 28x by 2027 wouldn’t be crazy. That’s a ~20% gain, not counting buybacks.

Final Thoughts

Alphabet isn’t flashy. It doesn’t always talk a big game. But when it moves, it tends to change industries.

In 2025, it's still the backbone of the internet, but it’s also laying the track for the next wave of computing. That makes it more than just a “hold.” It’s a company that continues to matter, even if we sometimes forget it’s there.

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Always conduct your own research or speak to a qualified professional before investing.