In this blog post, you will learn more about GCP for startups. If you are a startup and looking to get started with GCP, this is the blog post for you! We will go over what GCP is, how it can help your business grow, and some tips on getting started.
What is Google Cloud Platform?
Google Cloud Platform (GCP) offers a wide range of computing services that are available in one easy-to-use package.
These include computing power from virtual machines to machine learning training cycles.
You can access these features through an intuitive dashboard or command-line tools.
This makes it easier for startups to focus on their product instead of managing infrastructure details.
How can GCP help startups?
GCP offers a wide range of services to startup companies, from computing power and storage for your application code to machine learning training cycles.
Startups have access to Google’s tools that speed up the process of deploying, managing, and scaling applications on the Google Cloud Platform.
These include:
Google App Engine
A managed platform for building scalable web applications without worrying about the underlying infrastructure details.
Cloud Functions
A serverless environment where you can create event-driven microservices.
BigQuery
Distributed data warehouse providing interactive analysis with SQL-like query language.
Allows startups to analyze big datasets quickly using our SQL engine running over terabytes of data or trillions of rows to help drive insights into the trends that are shaping your industry.
Data Studio 360
Data visualization tool helping visualize different kinds of datasets.
Machine Learning
Managed service that allows developers to train and deploy models at scale
Compute Engine
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) allowing customers to run virtually unlimited computing power on Google’s infrastructure.
Cloud Storage
Distributed object storage for any kind of data that is accessible from anywhere and big enough to hold it.
Cloud SQL
Fully-managed MySQL service hosted in Google Cloud Platform data centers.
Firebase
Quickly develop powerful mobile apps by connecting them to other services like Gmail, Analytics, AdWords, etc.. You’ll be able to use GCP tools again here!
Why build a startup on Google Cloud?
a). You don’t have to worry about hiring engineering teams or waiting weeks for servers to be provisioned – scale up as quickly as you like with pre-configured machines that can crunch through data at high speed!
b). GCP offers an intuitive set of APIs & SDKs so developers don’t have to spend time configuring infrastructure, they can just build their product.
This dramatically reduces downtime and allows them more time working on what really matters: solving problems for real people.
c) Partnering with Google Cloud gives startups access not only to our products but also support from Googlers who are leading the way in their field.
d) Innovate quickly and easily – With all the tech you need to launch your startup in one place, building and iterating on new ideas is simple.
Lastly, as a startup, you need to keep your burn rate low and GCP for startups is designed from the ground up with affordability in mind no matter what level of infrastructure or services that you require.
This means that you can build quickly without worrying about where next month’s rent will be coming from.
Google Cloud offers great discounts on all compute resources and has flexible monthly billing so it takes away any pain there too!
Startups that use Google Cloud Platform
Here are some of the startups already building and deploying their applications on the Google Cloud Platform.
SESAME
Sesame is simplifying patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic by ramping up its telehealth capacity.
MyCujoo
MyCujoo live stream football competitions around the world—powered on Google Cloud.
doc.ai
doc.ai uses AI and machine learning to create a platform that gives users a precise view of their health.
Tokopedia
Tokopedia connects customers and sellers through live video with Cloud CDN, supports business decisions with smart analytics on BigQuery, and scales up shopping events seamlessly with Redis Enterprise.
Google Cloud alternatives for startups
a). Amazon Web Services
The cloud computing space is highly competitive and AWS has been the market leader for a long time.
It is definitely worth considering if you want to build your product on their platform, especially as they also offer startups free credits!
b) Microsoft Azure
Their unique selling points are around using open source tooling like Linux containers and Kubernetes with native support from Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
They are even offering $500 million in credit incentives for early-stage companies which might be enough to sway them into choosing Microsoft!
c) IBM Bluemix
Again very similar offerings here but the one key difference that we should mention is that, unlike GCP for startups where there is no additional charge for machine types once you hit certain limits, IBM Bluemix has a small charge for all their machines which can add up quickly if you’re not careful.
d) Digital Ocean
This is the cheapest cloud provider on the market but there are some big downsides to be aware of here including no support, single region only, and very limited options.
Digital Ocean is a great option for startups that don’t have heavy compute requirements. They also offer a generous free plan which makes it even more attractive.
If you are just getting started, this may be the way to go! Startups can use GCP from one of their cloud partners
e) Heroku
This is a very simple and easy-to-use platform for deploying Rails apps via Git, however, we would only recommend it if you’re building your product on Ruby or Node.js as support for other programming languages isn’t great (although they do have limited Python hosting).
If you are looking to save money without any other caveats then this could be worth considering though it might make sense to build an MVP first with GCP or AWS as a proof-of-concept before launching live services elsewhere.
The cost savings that they offer will likely come at your expense in terms of downtime and customer service so think carefully before committing!
You will also need to keep an eye on usage costs every month otherwise things can get expensive.