The document discusses the history and development of a new technology called blockchain. Blockchain first emerged with bitcoin in 2009 as a way to digitally and securely record transactions without a central authority. It has since expanded beyond cryptocurrencies and is now being applied in areas like banking, supply chain management, and healthcare to help track digital transactions and assets. The technology works by distributing a shared, encrypted database across a network of participating computers and requires consensus to update that ledger of transactions.