Set to launch tomorrow is a website that claims to provide structure to the webs infinite amount of data. Wolfram Alpha, named after British inventor Dr. Stephen Wolfram, is a search engine that claims to have the ability to work things out on the fly, just as a human would. It takes search results and compiles them into a database using a combination of human and machine generated content. This search engine is not for the faint of heart though. Early reviews are mixed, with some reporting the results are more complicated than they wanted and others reporting it provides info that no other engine can.

The concept of Wolfram Alpha is a good one; organizing something that is slowly spiraling out of control with data, the internet. However, one big, $120+ billion speed bump stands in their way, Google. With Yahoo! and MSN struggling to gain any ground on the behemoth, it is going to be an uphill battle for Wolfram Alpha to change the gravitational pull of Google and its 141MM visitors per month.

What Wolfram Alpha did successfully do is give the hare a swift kick in the behind. In response to all of the commotion about the new engine, Google released news of Google Squared the day Dr. Wolfram previewed his engine. Similar to Wolfram, Google Squared will provide structure to content across the web, displaying results as squares in an online spreadsheet, thus the name. While the science behind Wolfram Alpha may be superior, Google Squared has one advantage, it will be found within the Google umbrella.

I would be naïve to assume that Google will never be toppled, but is Wolfram Alpha the one to do it? With a name that hardly rolls off the tongue, Wolfram Alpha has an uphill battle. While they may not topple Google, in 5 years we may look back at May 15th, 2009 as the day search changed.