Google said its cloud runs 4 million apps, but we have no idea how well it's really doing

When it comes to cloud computing, everyone basically agrees it's a three-dog race: Amazon (the giant), Microsoft (hot on its tails) and Google (making a big push).

But when it comes to nabbing customers, it's unclear how well Google is really doing.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai says that Google's Cloud Platform, the cloud that competes head-to-head with Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure, now runs 4 million applications. So he said on the quarterly conference call with Wall Street analysts.

While that's nothing to sneeze at, he was very clear in the language: this isn't 4 million different customers, it's 4 million apps.

He also didn't discuss revenues or even revenue "run-rate." Run rate is a hazy number that indicates how much revenue the company would earn in a year based on its current trajectory, and its one of the favorite ways that cloud companies like to talk about their progress.

Google is considered in the top three because it grew up in the cloud, invented a lot of cloud technology and really understands cloud computing. And 2016 will be a year that Google comes on strong, Pichai promises.

It just hired enterprise queen Diane Greene to get Google's cloud business off the ground, he mentioned on the call.

Pichai also promised that Google's cloud "is already getting significant traction. It's a strongly growing business for us," he said, and it will be one of Google's "major investment areas in 2016."

But he also acknowledged that meeting with potential customers, enterprises still want to be reassured how "committed" Google is to the cloud computing business.

Enterprise customers tell us that they aren't just listening to promises.

They have a long list of features they want in a cloud platform to make them consider it, he indicated. Plus, they also want and need enterprise friendly contracts, something that Diane Greene will no doubt have to figure out.