In 2016, tech and finance companies alone invested $1 billion in blockchain. Blockchain has rapidly progressed from an esoteric technology to the forefront of R&D for major financial institutions, governments, universities and multinational corporations. This guide is designed for founders, entrepreneurs, product managers, innovators and developers looking to learn how blockchain development works, how to incorporate blockchain into their businesses and what’s needed to start a blockchain project right now. Introducing the Blockchain As techies and innovators at heart, we could go on for days about blockchain. Regardless, the technology produces some powerful benefits: Decentralization by removing single points of failure Trust through mass consensus Transparency with public transactions Security through immutability What Is “The Blockchain”? Blockchain simply refers to a type of database — one that’s massive, decentralized, transparent and immutable. It’