Cloud Native Development with Google Cloud

Chapter 2. Why Google Cloud Platform?

You can’t build a great building on a weak foundation.

Gordon B. Hinckley

At the time of writing, Google Cloud Platform (GCP) holds the third place in the public cloud market, trailing behind Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure. With AWS commanding a significant mindshare and Azure capitalizing on Microsoft’s expansive corporate presence, one might question the rationale behind opting for Google Cloud. Why not consider other players such as IBM Cloud, Oracle, or Alibaba?

One reason I choose Google Cloud for cloud native development is the integration of services. AWS famously has two-pizza teams that work on each service independently. This produces a wide range of services quickly, often with overlapping capabilities. On the other hand, Google seems to put more emphasis on integration, having fewer services that work well end to end, making it easier to build the laboratory, factory, citadel, and observatory.

Although Google Cloud represents approximately 10% of the cloud market share, it powers 70% of tech unicorns at the time of writing. This disproportionate representation suggests that Google Cloud resonates with digital natives for valid reasons. AWS and Azure may host a multitude of traditional applications, but digital natives, unhindered by legacy infrastructure, favor a cloud native development style, and Google Cloud aligns better with this approach. In essence, Google Cloud is built by cloud native engineers for cloud ...