Alphabet, the parent company of Google and YouTube, announced on Tuesday that it had a net profit of 100,118 million dollars (about 96,468 million euros) during the year 2024, 36% that in 2023. This is the absolute record of profits of a private company in a single exercise of history, overcoming the 99.8 billion that Apple registered in 2022. While presenting these results, Google has updated its ethical guide to artificial intelligence (AI) to allow the application of this technology in armament or in systems that violate human rights.
In the previous writing of that document, which can be consulted through the tool Internet Archivethe Corporation specifically vetoed the use of its AI in “weapons or other technologies whose main purpose or application is to directly cause injuries to people”. Also those “whose purpose contravenes widely accepted principles of international law and human rights” or that “collect or use surveillance information violating internationally accepted norms.”
Those vetoes have been eliminated in The new guidepublished in the early hours of Tuesday. Demis Hassabis, Nobel Prize and Vice President of the Company, has justified the changes in the need to win the AI career. “There is a world competition for the leadership of AI in an increasingly complex geopolitical panorama. We believe that democracies must lead the development of AI, guided by fundamental values such as freedom, equality and respect for human rights, ”he declares in a statement uploaded to Google’s official blog.
“We believe that companies, governments and organizations that share these values should work together to create an AI that protects people, promotes global growth and supports national security,” he adds.
It is a change that other companies such as Openai have already carried out, which eliminated the restriction to the arms use of its AI in 2022. The company led by Sam Altman has already signed contracts with the Pentagon to begin these types of developments.
Record benefits
Google has matched this change of norms with that of its record benefits, supported by revenues of 350,018 million, 14% more than in 2023. Its CEO, Sobal Pichai, one of the great technology entrepreneurs sitting in the front row of Donald Trump’s possession ceremony has framed these good results precisely in the increase in the artificial intelligence business.
“Our Google Cloud offer, fed by the AI, is having a strong which has advanced that its corporation will invest another 75,000 million dollars in 2025 to continue developing this technology.
“We are building, testing and launching products and models faster than ever, and making significant computer progress and achieving efficiencies,” Pichai summarized. According to its statement, in the fourth quarter Alphabet had a net profit of 26,536 million dollars, 28 % more year -on -year, and revenue of 96,469 million, 12 % more, most of the Google search engine and advertising .
According to the quarterly breakdown, the Google Services segment – which encompasses all Google products and services – entered 84,094 million, 10% more, followed by Google Cloud, which entered 11,955 million, 30% further. YouTube advertising, which is included in Google Servicios, generated income of 10,473 million, 14% more.
Faced with these positive results, Alphabet had a revenue reduction of 39%, about 400 million, in the “other bets” segment that includes the Verily Health firm and that of Autonomous Taxis Waymo. This despite the fact that in the latter sector the corporation has operated almost the whole year without its most consecrated competitor, Cruise, which was backed by General Motors. After an accident in one of his robotaxis, General Motors decided to retire from this business and questioned his profitability.
However, the results of the company have been worse than investors expected, who have penalized Google’s shares in the operations after market.
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