People particularly use the Internet due to the possibility of finding answers to questions they aren’t aware of.
Search Engines were created with the motive of answering such questions or directing users to a path of getting answers to these questions. Google and Wolfram Alpha are two such engines.
Though both of them are different from each other, their aim and foundation are the same.
Key Takeaways
- Google is a search engine that provides links to web pages, while Wolfram Alpha is a computational knowledge engine that answers specific queries.
- Google is free to use and generates revenue through advertising, while Wolfram Alpha requires a subscription to access its features fully.
- Google is better suited for general searches, while Wolfram Alpha is useful for complex queries and scientific calculations.
Google vs Wolfram Alpha
The difference between Google and Wolfram Alpha is that Google directs us towards what the answer may be and gives links to substantiate its results. Whereas Wolfram Alpha understands the question you ask and answers it directly, and after a satisfactory explanation, it gives external links to refer to.
Before Google became Google, it was called backRub mainly because of its creator’s original homepages. A company that started in a small rented garage in California is now the largest startup ever.
Starbucks played a huge role in the success of Google, which was then only a one-person sales team. Google’s team also launched Alphabet with Google’s success and aim for expansion.
Wolfram Alpha is not the only what basic feature it has. Wolfram Alpha is a website that has features such as scrabble scores, anagrams, an ancient pictogram, a drunk drive test, a BMI checker, a captcha creator, a data finder, and so much more.
British American Stephen Wolfram, founder and CEO of Wolfram Alpha, announced Wolfram language as a “new general multi-paradigm programming language.”
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Wolfram Alpha | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 4th September 1998. | 18th May 2009 |
| Founder | Larry Page and Sergey Brin | Stephen Wolfram |
| Headquarters | Mountain View, California | Champaign, Illinois, United States |
| Engine | Search Engine | Computational Engine or Answer Engine |
| Use | Provides links to information on other sites. | Provides answers to questions and then provides links. |
| Computational or Mathematical Equations | I cannot answer directly. | I can answer directly. |
| Range | Wide Range of solutions, i.e., it answers questions from all categories | A narrow range of solutions as only mathematical questions are answered. |
What is Google?
The leading Internet search engine of the world and today’s most famous and interesting business in the globe. The two greatly famous personalities who developed Google Search Engine were Larry Page and Sergey Brin.
This project was highly accidental and made as a college project. Google is a platform, an explorer, a life saviour for some, a library for others, and an organization, which provides information on everything around the world, not only externally and internally but also eternally, irrespective of time and place.
With the millennials leading this generation, google has developed features that help to fixes not only our knowledge of the outer world but also understand all the problems, breakdowns, and excitement of a human and help humans cope with them.
The growing pace of the millennials and the technological advancement that came along made every individual on the planet highly dependent on Google and made them prefer using google for their research and doubts.
Thus, it proves that Google has succeeded in becoming a global platform.
Google has also become capable of developing the world’s first Artificially Intelligent Google Assistant. Every coin has two sides, head and tails, good and bad, and so does Google.
Individuals take unnecessary advantage of the platform by publishing pornographic content, cyberbullying, or trafficking. Currently, Google is working on expanding its trade business.
What is Wolfram Alpha?
Wolfram Alpha is a computerized knowledge engine and answer engine developed by Wolfram Research, officially launched on May 18, 2009.
It solves factual questions by processing and displaying answers from externally sourced data. It can also solve mathematical equations and responds with numerical and statistical results.
Wolfram Alpha is better than normal search engines in handling society and culture-based searches. It gives more accurate search suggestions and gives a precise number of helpful responses.
Wolfram Alpha proves to be of great help for doing historical or even modern culture-based research. It will bring up a pictorial timeline and the most relevant points about the event.
In every search, it gives full key facts about each word typed additionally. We can click on individual terms or events to find dates, countries, and people involved.
It is extremely useful in today’s world for money conversion of different countries and even predicting the worth of currencies today and in the past.
Wolfram Alpha is not very popular or rather active today because of some disadvantages. It reduces the scope of gathering detailed information.
This directly means that users have to type each term for which they want to extract information, unlike other search engines, which do not have such restricted scope of the results.
Main Differences Between Google and Wolfram Alpha
- Google was founded on 4th September 1998. Wolfram Alpha was founded on 18th May 2009.
- Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded Google. Stephen Wolfram founded Wolfram Alpha.
- Google headquarters are in Mountain View, California. Whereas Wolfram Alpha headquarters are in Champaign, Illinois, United States.
- Google is a search engine. Whereas Wolfram Alpha is a computational or answer-based engine.
- Google provides links to information on other sites. On the other hand, Wolfram Alpha provides answers to questions and then provides links.
- Google cannot directly answer computational or mathematical equations, but Wolfram Alpha is designed to answer computational or mathematical equations.
- Google has a wide range of solutions, i.e., it answers questions from all categories. Whereas Wolfram alpha has a narrow range of solutions as only mathematical questions are answered.
- https://www.atlantis-press.com/proceedings/iccese-18/25894111
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02763860903485225
Last Updated : 11 June, 2023
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
The idea that Google was initially called backRub is quite comical. It’s interesting to see the humor in the early days of such a major company.
I have my doubts about how useful Wolfram Alpha really is. It seems to have too many limitations compared to Google.
I agree. The article highlights the downside of Wolfram Alpha’s restricted scope for gathering information.
I think Wolfram Alpha’s limitations make it much less practical than Google for everyday use.
This article provides an insightful comparison between Google and Wolfram Alpha. It’s clear that both platforms have distinct advantages and shortcomings.
The detailed comparison table provides a clear picture of the differences between Google and Wolfram Alpha. It’s a valuable resource for understanding their unique capabilities.
I’m not convinced that Wolfram Alpha is actually better than normal search engines. Its limitations seem like a major drawback.
The discussion about the rise of Google and Starbucks’ role in its success is genuinely intriguing. It’s amazing to trace the roots of such a prominent company.
It’s definitely compelling to see how Starbucks played a part in the success story of Google. It’s a unique piece of history.
Absolutely, the entrepreneurial journey of Google from a small garage to the largest startup is quite inspiring.
This article is incredibly informative and thorough in explaining the differences between Google and Wolfram Alpha. It’s very useful to understand the different functions each platform serves.
I completely agree with you. The comparison table provides a clear and concise breakdown of the differences between the two search engines.
I find the detailed history and background of Google and Wolfram Alpha really interesting. This article provides an in-depth look at the development of these search engines.
Yes, it’s fascinating to learn about the origins and key figures behind these influential technology companies.
I had no idea about some of the details mentioned here. It’s really enlightening to have all this information laid out in one place.