A certain kind of kudo does indeed go to Google. I don't take the article as claiming that the accomplishments of Google the company are somehow less impressive

A certain kind of kudo does indeed go to Google. I don't take the article as claiming that the accomplishments of Google the company are somehow less impressive than the accomplishments of Apple the company. Instead, the article is about how Steve Jobs has had four major successes as a CEO. That is extremely, extremely rare. Google's founders are still young and much may happen between now and when they retire. But for the moment, the breathless prose lauding Mr. Jobs is quite nearly justified.