Google Strategy: The Business Rationale Behind Creating Chrome or Android

Google builds both Chrome and Android. Pick one of the two and explain why Google decided to create it. ```hint Who controlled the doorway Think about what stood between people and Google's services when the product began, who owned that layer at the time, and what that meant for Google's main business. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Should the answer explain the original decision at the time Google made it, why the product matters to Google today, or both? - Should the focus be Google's business motives, the user problems the product solved, or how the two connect? - If I choose Android, does "built" include the purchase of the original Android startup, or only what Google did with it afterwards? - Do you want me to close with a judgment on whether the bet paid off? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A clear choice of product and the state of the market when Google made its move. - The user problems the product addressed and the strategic threat or opportunity it answered for Google. - How specific design and distribution choices, such as open-source code and free use, served those goals. - Whether the bet worked, the costs Google took on, and the alternatives it passed over. - The tensions the strategy created later, such as regulatory scrutiny or conflicts with partners. ### Follow-up Questions - The product you chose is free to the people who use it. How does it make money for Google, directly or indirectly, and how would you measure that? - What was the strongest argument against building it, and how would you have answered it at the time? - If you were the PM for that product today, what would its most important goal be for the next three years?