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Apr 1, 2004: The Inbox That Was Too Big to Be a Joke
Description
Storage stopped being a limitation and quietly became the product.
On April 1, 2004, Google introduced Gmail with 1 gigabyte of free storage, an amount so far beyond industry norms that many assumed it was a prank. Inside the company, engineers like Paul Buchheit had been building a different kind of email experience, one that treated messages as something to keep, search, and organize rather than delete. That decision shifted email from a temporary communication tool into a permanent, searchable archive, while also opening the door to a new model where user data could support targeted advertising at scale.
From bsnsHistory, the daily podcast about the moments when business quietly reshaped the world.
Written and hosted by Ron Trucks. Research and editing by Rodney Russ. Sound design by Angela Cahoy. Music by Cody Martin and Soundstripe.
For more daily business stories, visit www.bsnsDAILYpodcasts.com