15 big moments from 15 years of Google Greece
Fifteen years ago, we opened our offices in Athens with the commitment to make information available to everyone. Today, Google Greece is a burgeoning tech hub working on projects to support tourism, upskill unemployed young people, advocate for environmental sustainability, commit to Grow Greece with Google — and much more.
In honour of our 15th birthday, we’re taking a look at some of our biggest moments in Greece.
1. Street View arrives in Greece
The past 15 years of Google Greece have been an incredible journey, and Street View has been along for much of the ride. Since its arrival in Greece in 2014, Street View has become a key part of how people around the world experience Greece. Combining content from Google and contributors, Street View has transported people to many amazing Greek places, fostering cultural awareness, encouraging conservation and making the country more accessible to all.
2. Google Arts & Culture brings Greece’s heritage to life
The first Greek museums launched on Google Arts & Culture in 2012, inviting the world to explore the country’s rich heritage, from the Acropolis Museum to the Monastery of St. John the Theologian on Patmos island. Discover works from our 15 partners, a large variety of artefacts spanning from street art to The Children’s Art Gallery of Greece creations, or take a virtual deep dive into our pocket galleries of Heraklion Municipal Art Gallery or the Sotiris Felios Collection.
3. A Greek student creates a Doodle 4 Google
In 2013, a Greek student came in first in the Doodle 4 Google contest and his work went live on the Google homepage. Responding to the theme “My Greece,” the 10-year-old won over eight thousand other submissions. The story behind his Doodle? Fishing with his grandpa and his vision for “a brighter Greece despite the gloomy economy.”
4. Google invests in Greek tourism and more
In 2014, we launched the Grow Greek Tourism Online program with the Ministry of Tourism, a local initiative aiming to help Greek travel businesses with free training courses and tools so they can strengthen their online presence and grow. In 2020 the program evolved into Grow Greece with Google, aiming to support the country's recovery through technology. More than 275,000 people and small businesses have been trained to date.
5. Aeschylus' "Persians" goes global on YouTube
In 2020, "Persians" by Aeschylus — the oldest surviving Greek drama — was streamed globally for the first time ever on YouTube from the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, in collaboration with Google Greece.
6. Greece gets explored from the comfort of home
During the pandemic, we also supported the Ministry of Tourism with the Greece From Home initiative, aimed at helping Greeks and people from all over the world stay connected with Greek culture, and discover and get inspired by the beauty of our country — all from home.
7. ‘Be Internet awesome’ kicks off
Our educational program "Be Internet awesome" kicked off in Greece in 2020, with the aim of teaching people about internet safety. To date, the program, supported by Google.org, has allowed us to train 15,000 teachers and more than 230,000 students — either live or online.
8. Android Earthquake Alerts is piloted in Greece
In 2021, we piloted Android Earthquake Alerts — which uses sensors in Android phones to detect earthquakes around the world — a year after its launch in the U.S. and New Zealand. In a natural disaster or emergency, every second counts. This is especially true in Greece, a country regularly hit by earthquakes. Supporting the country with crisis response continues to be key for Google in Greece.
9. Google Cloud region is coming to Greece
In 2022, we announced our plan to open the first Cloud region in Greece, ultimately aiming to help accelerate the country's digital transformation. According to research from AlphaBeta Economics commissioned by Google, by 2030, Google Cloud's region in Greece will contribute a cumulative USD 2.2 billion to Greek GDP, and support the creation of more than 19,400 jobs by that year.
10. Athens: The city is the museum’ launches
That year, we also celebrated the beautiful capital of Greece with Athens: The city is the museum. This joint initiative developed with the Ministry of Tourism and the Municipality of Athens promoted the city as a tourist destination. Try the curated audio walks using Google Maps with sound to experience Athens in a whole new way.
11. Google accelerates sustainable development in Greece
Also in 2022, during the seventh Delphi Economic Forum, the Greek Ministry of Tourism and Google announced the launch of a joint educational program aiming to accelerate the sustainable development of small and medium-sized tourism enterprises in Greece. The new educational program ran in collaboration with the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC).
12. Flood Hub comes to Greece
In 2023, we extended our flood forecasting capabilities to Greece. The platform Flood Hub now includes some of Greece’s areas with the highest percentages of population exposed to flood risk and those that experience more extreme weather. Governments, aid organisations and individuals can use Flood Hub to take timely action and prepare for riverine floods, seeing locally relevant flood data and forecasts up to seven days in advance.
13. Bard speaks Greek
It’s July 2023: Bard — our collaborative AI tool — speaks and understands Greek, enabling local users to collaborate and create in their native language.
14. Immersive view launches
“It takes a lifetime to discover Greece, but it only takes an instant to fall in love with her,” the writer Henry Miller said. Well, this year, falling in love with some of the greatest Greek landmarks got easier, more natural and intuitive with immersive view in Google Maps. Start from the Parthenon then continue with the Erechtheion, the Theatre of Dionysus, Hadrian's Gate and the Temple of Olympian Zeus.
15. New funding goes towards climate action
Through grant funding from Google.org, we’re supporting ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability Europe with a new 1 million EUR funding scheme in Greece to foster data-driven environmental and climate action at the local level. The funding will be used to launch an open call where organisations can apply for up to 275,000 EUR for their eligible projects.
