Update: Google brings out big guns in support of Chrome

"This isn't one of those projects that started as a 20 percent time thing," Valdes said, referring to Google's policy of letting employees spend part of their time on projects they come up with. "This is definitely a strategic initiative that has been two years in the making and involves dozens of engineers."

Indeed, Google officials acknowledged at the press conference that the company has invested significant resources on Chrome.

But framing it as Google's attempt to win the browser wars is a mistake, Valdes said. "It's about the Web apps battle. It's about having a platform that will support the next generation of Web apps," he said.

Web applications in general, and Google's in particular, are pushing the limits of current browsers, including IE, Safari and Firefox. "Google is pushing the envelope and Chrome gives it a bigger envelope for Web apps," Valdes said.

"More importantly, Chrome is the platform Google will control," he added. "That makes it a strategic element in their technology portfolio."

Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney agreed that investing in developing its own browser makes strategic sense for Google. "Given that search has become such a fundamental part of Internet usage, anything that impacts overall Internet usage is important for Google," he wrote in a research note Tuesday. "Also, while browser developments have to date had no material impact on Google’s advertising base, a hedge against future browser developments makes sense."

However, he noted, it remains to be seen whether users will consider Chrome faster, simpler and safer enough than current browsers to justify switching to it.

Chrome is now available as a free download.

This story was updated on September 2, 2008