Google reports strong growth driven by AI, Cloud operations

SAN FRANCISCO

Google's parent company Alphabet has reported robust third-quarter results, with revenue climbing 15 percent year-over-year to $88.3 billion, powered by strong performance from its crucial advertising business and growth in cloud services.

The technology giant's net income surged 34 percent to $26.3 billion.

"Our commitment to innovation, as well as our long-term focus and investment in AI, are paying off with consumers and partners benefiting from our AI tools," said CEO Sundar Pichai, referring to the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence.

The results showed that Google is holding its own despite worry that the search engine juggernaut has been caught short in the AI race.

Google faces increasing pressure as its world-dominating search engine competes for ads with a widening array of platforms, including Meta, Amazon, Apple, TikTok and even streamers such as Netflix.

Questions also persist about whether its search engine will withstand the growing popularity of generative AI chatbots like ChatGPT, which can answer questions without the clutter of Google's list of links.

In response to these pressures, Google earlier this month reshuffled its search engine business, replacing the division chief after a four-year tenure.

Google Cloud emerged as a standout performer in the June-to-September period, with revenue jumping 35 percent to $11.4 billion, driven by increased adoption of AI infrastructure and solutions.

The company's core Google Services segment, which includes Search, YouTube, and other advertising products, grew 13 percent to $76.5 billion.

YouTube hit a significant milestone, with total advertising and subscription revenues exceeding $50 billion over the past four quarters for the first time.