Larry Page
Computer scientist and entrepreneur · Computer scientist · Entrepreneur · Business executive
b. 1973 · Born in East Lansing, Michigan, United States · 3 min read
- Last verified: 12 November 2026
- Sources: 4
- Reviewed by Muse — Phase D second review (independent check)
American computer scientist who co-created the PageRank algorithm and co-founded Google with Sergey Brin in 1998; later chief executive of Alphabet.
Early Life
Lawrence Edward Page was born on 26 March 1973 in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. His father was a professor of computer science at Michigan State University, and he grew up in a household where computing was part of daily life. He graduated from East Lansing High School in 1991 and studied computer engineering at the University of Michigan, earning his degree in 1995.
Education
Page earned a bachelor's degree in computer engineering with honours from the University of Michigan in 1995 and a master's degree in computer science from Stanford University in 1998. He began a doctorate in computer science at Stanford but did not complete it, leaving to build Google.
Career
Page earned a degree in computer engineering from the University of Michigan in 1995 and entered the computer science doctorate programme at Stanford University, where he met Sergey Brin. Working from Page's dormitory room, they built a search project first called BackRub, based on PageRank, and published their design in the paper 'The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine' in 1998. In September 1998 they founded Google Inc., with Page as chief executive. Eric Schmidt succeeded him as chief executive in 2001, and Page returned as chief executive in April 2011. In August 2015 Page reorganised the company into the holding company Alphabet, with Google as its largest part, and became Alphabet's chief executive while Sundar Pichai took charge of Google. In December 2019 Page and Brin stepped back from their executive roles, and Pichai became chief executive of Alphabet as well. Page remains a co-founder, board member and controlling shareholder of Alphabet as of November 2026.
Achievements
Page's central achievement is Google. With Sergey Brin he devised PageRank, a way of ranking web pages by the number and importance of the links pointing to them, an idea drawn from the way academic papers are cited. The two turned it into the Google search engine, founded the company in September 1998, and built it into one of the world's largest technology companies. Page served as Google's chief executive from its founding until 2001 and again from 2011 to 2015. In 2015 he reorganised the company under a new parent, Alphabet, and served as Alphabet's chief executive until December 2019. In 2004 he and Brin received the Marconi Prize for PageRank.
Legacy
Page is remembered as the co-creator of the search engine that organised the web. PageRank turned the web's own link structure into a measure of relevance, and Google's success made search the front door to the internet and advertising its business model. His later career was defined by scale: the creation of Alphabet to hold Google alongside other ventures, and his withdrawal from day-to-day management in 2019 while keeping control through the founders' voting shares. Because he is a living person whose company and public roles change frequently, this profile records only documented milestones and will need regular updating from reliable sources.
Major Achievements
- With Sergey Brin, created the PageRank algorithm, which ranked web pages by the links pointing to them and became the basis of Google Search
- Co-founded Google in September 1998 and served as its chief executive from its founding until 2001 and again from 2011 to 2015
- Created Alphabet in 2015 as Google's parent company and served as its chief executive until December 2019
- Received the Marconi Prize in 2004 with Sergey Brin for the PageRank algorithm
- Built Google from a Stanford research project into one of the world's largest technology companies
Contributions
Page's contribution was to treat the web as a graph of linked pages and to rank those pages by their links, an approach that made search results far more useful than the keyword lists that came before. Google's engineering culture, its advertising business and its expansion into maps, video, mobile and cloud all grew from that search foundation.
Notable Works
- PageRank algorithm (co-creator)
- Google (co-founder, 1998)
- Alphabet Inc. (co-founder, 2015)
- The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine (1998, with Sergey Brin)
Milestones
- 1973 — Born on 26 March in East Lansing, Michigan, United States Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica
- 1995 — Earned a degree in computer engineering from the University of Michigan and entered Stanford, where he met Sergey Brin Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica
- 1998 — Founded Google Inc. with Sergey Brin, with Page as chief executive Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica
- 2001 — Eric Schmidt succeeded Page as chief executive of Google Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page)
- 2004 — Received the Marconi Prize with Sergey Brin for PageRank Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page)
- 2011 — Returned as chief executive of Google Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page)
- 2015 — Created Alphabet as Google's parent company and became its chief executive Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page)
- 2019 — Stepped back as Alphabet chief executive; Sundar Pichai took over Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page)
Timeline
- 26 March 1973
Born in East Lansing, Michigan, United States; sources differ on the birthplace (see fact note)
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page) - 1995
Earned a degree in computer engineering from the University of Michigan and entered Stanford University's computer science doctorate programme, where he met Sergey Brin
Year only — exact date unknown Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica - 1998
Published 'The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine' with Sergey Brin and founded Google Inc. in September, with Page as chief executive
Year only — exact date unknown Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page) - 2001
Eric Schmidt succeeded Page as chief executive of Google
Year only — exact date unknown Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page) - 2004
Received the Marconi Prize with Sergey Brin for PageRank
Year only — exact date unknown Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page) - 2011-04
Returned as chief executive of Google
Approximate date Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page) - 2015-08
Created Alphabet as Google's parent company and became its chief executive; Sundar Pichai took charge of Google
Approximate date Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page) - 2019-12
Stepped back from the chief executive role at Alphabet with Sergey Brin; Sundar Pichai became chief executive of Alphabet
Approximate date Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page)
Related Personalities
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Larry Page?
Larry Page (born 1973) is an American computer scientist and entrepreneur who co-founded Google with Sergey Brin in 1998. He created the PageRank search algorithm, led Google as chief executive twice, and was chief executive of its parent company, Alphabet, from 2015 to 2019.
Source: Encyclopaedia BritannicaWhat is PageRank?
PageRank is a search ranking algorithm Page devised with Sergey Brin at Stanford University. It ranks a web page by the number and importance of the links pointing to it, treating links as votes of confidence. It became the foundation of Google Search, and Page received the Marconi Prize for it in 2004.
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page)Did Larry Page found Google alone?
No. Page and Brin founded Google together in September 1998, after meeting as graduate students at Stanford. Page developed the PageRank idea and Brin brought data-mining expertise that turned it into a working search engine.
Source: Encyclopaedia BritannicaWhen did Larry Page step down as Alphabet CEO?
Page stepped down as chief executive of Alphabet in December 2019, together with Brin, who stepped down as president. Sundar Pichai, who had led Google since 2015, became chief executive of Alphabet as well. Page and Brin remain co-founders, board members and controlling shareholders.
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica; Wikipedia (Larry Page)When was Larry Page CEO of Google?
Page was Google's chief executive from the company's founding in 1998 until 2001, when Eric Schmidt took over, and again from April 2011 until July 2015, when Google was reorganised under Alphabet and Page became Alphabet's chief executive.
Source: Wikipedia (Larry Page); Encyclopaedia BritannicaSources & References
- Larry Page — Encyclopaedia Britannica — Encyclopaedia Britannica (accessed 12 November 2026)
- Larry Page — Wikipedia (cross-check) — Wikipedia (accessed 12 November 2026)
- Larry Page — Encyclopaedia Britannica (print article) — Encyclopaedia Britannica (accessed 12 November 2026)
- File:Larry Page in the European Parliament, 17.06.2009 (cropped).jpg — Wikimedia Commons (portrait file page) — Wikimedia Commons (accessed 12 November 2026)
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