Alphabet beats in second quarter earnings report

The company, which is the parent entity of online behemoth Google, saw revenue rise 21.3% in the quarter to July, hitting $21.5bn from $17.7bn a year earlier.

Expectations from Wall Street were $8.04 a share but were surpassed easily at $8.42 per share.

Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat said in a statement that the results "reflect the successful investments we've made over many years in rapidly expanding areas such as mobile and video."

Google has taken measures to enhance its video services, going head-to-head with Facebook and Twitter in the market.

The firm has also earmarked artificial intelligence development as a key area for progress in the near future, after a restructuring drive in 2015 which saw the creation of Alphabet as a holding company of sorts.

Porat pointed out that a focus on the developing of self-driving technology will be hugely important for the business in months and years to come.

"We're focused on fully autonomous cars because in early testing we saw the risk of depending on drivers to remain engaged once you give them the option to switch off. So we've invested a lot there. We're testing extensively based on this approach," she said.

Advertising revenue for Alphabet increased 19% to $19.14bn for the quarter, with companies keen to enhance their image via its search engine, and particularly, through Youtube.