Google's market capitalisation passed that of Microsoft in early trading on the Nasdaq on Monday, marking another moment at which the company that defined computing in the 1990s has been outpaced by rivals.
First it was Apple, once a minnow in the PC market, which blew past Microsoft in May 2010, hitting $227.26bn against Bill Gates's creation's $227.25bn.Now it is Google's turn, with its total share capital – and in effect the stock market's estimates of its total future profits – valued at $248.35bn against Microsoft's $247.73bn. It is also knocking on Walmart's door: even a slight rise in its value could put it third in the US listings.
By calculations on Monday evening, Apple is now the most valuable public company in the world ($626.87bn), with Google fourth and Microsoft fifth in a list that is dominated by technology companies.