We dig deep into Alphabet, the tech giant that has become so much more than search. To start, we cover whether search is being disrupted and then cover the adjacent businesses like YouTube and Google Cloud that may have more power than you think. To end the show, we discuss some hidden gems in Alphabet’s portfolio that you may not realize are worth hundreds of billions of dollars. Travis Hoium, Lou Whiteman, and Rachel Warren discuss: - The search core - YouTube’s scale and potential - Google Cloud’s growth - Hidden gems we’re excited about Companies discussed: Alphabet (GOOG), Tesla (TSLA), Netflix (NFLX). Host: Travis Hoium Guests: Lou Whiteman, Rachel Warren Engineer: Dan Boyd Disclosure: Advertisements are sponsored content and provided for informational purposes only. The Motley Fool and its affiliates (collectively, “TMF”) do not endorse, recommend, or verify the accuracy or completeness of the statements made within advertisements. TMF is not involved in the offer, sale, or solicitation of any securities advertised herein and makes no representations regarding the suitability, or risks associated with any investment opportunity presented. Investors should conduct their own due diligence and consult with legal, tax, and financial advisors before making any investment decisions. TMF assumes no responsibility for any losses or damages arising from this advertisement. We’re committed to transparency: All personal opinions in advertisements from Fools are their own. The product advertised in this episode was loaned to TMF and was returned after a test period or the product advertised in this episode was purchased by TMF. Advertiser has paid for the sponsorship of this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An Alphabet Stock Deep Dive

Motley Fool Hidden Gems Investing

# Full Transcript

**Podcast:** Motley Fool Money

## Transcript

Alphabet is one of the biggest companies in the world, so it's time to take a deep dive. Motley Fool Money starts now. Welcome to Motley Fool Money. I am Travis Hoyam, joined today by Rachel Warren and Lou Whiteman. And we have a big event today going on this week for Motley Fool One members.

So we're recording this a little bit early, but I still get to get together with Rachel and Lou to talk today a little bit about Alphabet. This is one of those companies that just seems to get bigger and more powerful by the year. So we're going to go through some of their biggest businesses. And then at the end of the show, in the last segment, we're going to talk a little bit about what the future of this company might look like. Some hidden gems that might be hidden on the balance sheet. But Lou, I wanted to start with their core business.

And what we're going to talk about as the core is search and others, the way that they report it. The network revenue, that's the one segment that's in decline. And then what they call subscription platform and devices. This includes Android and all kinds of other stuff involved in there. But this is really the business that we thought was potentially going to be disrupted by things like ChatGPT. Well, that didn't happen. Search is now growing double digits in 2025. I think we'll probably expect about the same in 2026.

Subscription platform and devices grew over 20%. I mentioned that network business is in decline a little bit, but that's more structural the way that the internet has changed. So when you think about this core for Alphabet, where is this business going in the future? So it's stable. And whether or not the growth is sustainable, I don't know. But I think the goal is, and what's special about Alphabet, what's unique about Alphabet is, is that stable is good enough.

And I mean, I am talking about the whole thing put together here because search, is search stable? I don't know. Search is evolving. But I've seen enough to conclude that Gemini can at least prevent that from being a total collapse. So I'm not worried about it. I don't know what the net net is after. But even if search goes down, Gemini goes up. Stable is good enough here because Alphabet is set up with this unique structure where we have this cash cowl, and then we are going to invest in growth elsewhere.

The flywheel is healthier now than it has ever been. If they get growth from this core business, all the better. We're not going to discount that. As investors, we like that. But what's important is, is that we can fund these other bets, these side projects that can turn into something. And those other bets have never looked more mature and more stable. It used to be a frat house, and now it is actually a collection of businesses.

So the bottom line here is, is that the core business growth there is sort of the icing on the cake. The thing is, is just can it sustain? And t...

An Alphabet Stock Deep Dive

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.

An Alphabet Stock Deep Dive

Transcript

Built for investment professionals

Every day you wait, your competitors are findingedge in conversations you're not hearing.

Every day you wait, your competitors are finding
edge in conversations you're not hearing.