Google Cloud Platform

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is a set of tools that lets people and companies store, look at, and manage information online without needing their own computer servers. It includes tools for computing power, data storage, data analytics, and even machine learning. All of these tools use the same technology that Google uses for its own popular products like Google Search, Gmail, and Google Docs.

Google began offering these cloud services in April 2008 with a product called App Engine. This tool lets developers build and host websites on Google's servers. Since then, Google has added many more services to help businesses and individuals work better with their data and technology.

Today, Google Cloud Platform is part of a larger group called Google Cloud. This includes not just the cloud services, but also tools for teamwork like Google Workspace, special versions of Android and ChromeOS, and helpful features for learning from data and mapping the world. Sometimes people might hear "Google Cloud" instead of "Google Cloud Platform," which can be a bit confusing.

Products

Google Cloud Platform offers many tools and services to help people build and run things online. Here are some of the main services:

Compute

• App Engine – A way to build and run web apps using different programming languages.
• Compute Engine – Virtual machines that run on Windows or Linux.
• Cloud Functions – Run small pieces of code when certain events happen.
• Cloud Run – Run web apps in a managed environment.

Storage and databases

• Cloud Storage – Store any kind of files, like photos or documents.
• Cloud SQL – Managed databases for websites and apps.
• Cloud Bigtable – A database for large amounts of data.
• Cloud Spanner – A database that can grow very large and stay consistent.

Networking

• VPC – Manage your own private network in the cloud.
• Cloud Load Balancing – Distribute traffic to keep websites fast.
• Cloud CDN – Speed up content delivery using Google's global network.
• Cloud DNS – Manage domain names for your websites.

Big data

• BigQuery – Analyze large amounts of data quickly.
• Cloud Dataflow – Process and analyze streams of data.
• Dataproc – Run large data jobs using popular tools.
• Cloud Pub/Sub – Send and receive events between different services.

Cloud AI

• Cloud AutoML – Build custom machine learning models.
• Cloud TPU – Special hardware for training machine learning models.
• Cloud Natural Language – Analyze text using machine learning.
• Cloud Speech-to-Text – Convert spoken words into text.
• Cloud Translation API – Translate text between many languages.
• Cloud Vision API – Analyze images using machine learning.

Management tools

• Operations suite – Monitor and manage your applications.
• Cloud Deployment Manager – Deploy cloud resources using templates.
• Cloud Console – Web interface to manage your cloud resources.
• Cloud Shell – Command-line tool to manage resources from a browser.

Identity and security

• Cloud Identity – Manage user sign-ins for your services.
• Cloud IAM – Control who can access what in your cloud resources.
• Cloud Security Command Center – Monitor security for your cloud data and services.

Internet of things (IoT)

• Cloud IoT Core – Connect and manage devices like sensors and machines.
• Cloud IoT Edge – Bring artificial intelligence to devices out in the world.

API platform

• Maps Platform – APIs for maps, routes, and places.
• Apigee API Platform – Tools to build, secure, and manage APIs.
• Cloud Endpoints – Deploy and manage APIs using NGINX.

Regions and zones

A region is a place in the world where you can use Google Cloud services. Each region is its own area and has smaller parts called zones.

A zone is a small area inside a region where you can set up your apps and data. Most regions have three zones. As of early 2024, Google Cloud Platform works in 40 regions and 121 zones around the world.

Similarity to services by other cloud service providers

Main article: Cloud-computing comparison

Google Cloud Platform is a set of tools and services that let people and companies store and work with information online, just like other companies do. If you already know about cloud services from other companies, looking at Google’s services can help you see what is the same and what is different. This can make it easier to understand what Google Cloud Platform offers.

Timeline

Google Cloud Platform has grown a lot over the years. Here are some important moments:

• April 2008 – Google introduced App Engine for developers to build web applications.
• May 2010 – Google launched Cloud Storage and BigQuery for handling big data.
• June 2012 – Google Compute Engine started, letting users run virtual machines on Google’s infrastructure.
• August 2013 – Google began automatically protecting data stored in Cloud Storage.
• June 2014 – Google announced Kubernetes, an open-source tool for managing applications.
• October 2014 – Google acquired Firebase, making it easier to build mobile and web apps.
• July 2015 – Google released version 1 of Kubernetes to a group of cloud companies.
• February 2016 – Google Cloud Functions became available for running small pieces of code.
• February 2018 – Google Cloud IoT Core became ready for use, helping connect devices to the internet.
• April 2019 – Google announced Anthos, a way to manage applications across different clouds.
• March 2020 – Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Google postponed its big online conference.
• May 2021 – Google announced Vertex AI, a service to help with smart computer learning.
• March 2023 – Google added advanced smart computer learning features to Google Cloud.
• May 2024 – Google Cloud worked with Airtel to bring better cloud services.

Public customers

Some big companies and groups that started using Google Cloud Platform in 2023 include Kingfisher plc, the Government of Kuwait, Deutsche Börse Group, Unity Technologies, Uber, FanCode, Daimler, and Wix.com. They use the platform to store data, analyze information, and build smart tools.