Google parent Alphabet profit soars as ads surge
Google parent Alphabet on Tuesday reported quarterly profit that had nearly tripled, as money poured in from ads on its search engine and YouTube video platform. “There was a rising tide of online activity in many parts of the world, and we’re proud that our services helped so many consumers and businesses,” Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai said of the quarter. The internet titan reported that profit nearly tripled from last year to $18.5 billion on revenue that rose sharply to $61.9 billion. Google is among the tech companies that saw use soar as the pandemic accelerated a trend toward working, shopping, socialising and more online. Alphabet shares, that ended the formal trading day down, slightly rose more than three per cent after release of the earnings figures, which beat market expectations. Pichai credited long-term investments in artificial intelligence and cloud computing as powering the internet giant’s performance. The strong quarter also reflected “elevated consumer online activity and broad-based strength in advertiser spend,” as the global economy strives to recover from damage done by the pandemic, according to chief financial officer Ruth Porat. Pichai...