Blockchain Revolution

How the Technology Behind Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrencies Is Changing the World

By: Don Tapscott, Alex Tapscott

Narrated by: Jeff Cummings

Length: 16 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

The technology likely to have the greatest impact on the future of the world economy has arrived, and it's not self-driving cars, solar energy, or artificial intelligence.

It's called the blockchain.

The first generation of the digital revolution brought us the Internet of information. The second generation - powered by blockchain technology - is bringing us the Internet of value: a new, distributed platform that can help us reshape the world of business and transform the old order of human affairs for the better.

Blockchain is the ingeniously simple, revolutionary protocol that allows transactions to be simultaneously anonymous and secure by maintaining a tamperproof public ledger of value. Though it's the technology that drives bitcoin and other digital currencies, the underlying framework has the potential to go far beyond these and record virtually everything of value to humankind, from birth and death certificates to insurance claims and even votes.

Why should you care? Maybe you're a music lover who wants artists to make a living off their art. Or a consumer who wants to know where that hamburger meat really came from. Perhaps you're an immigrant who's sick of paying big fees to send money home to loved ones. Or an entrepreneur looking for a new platform to build a business.

And those examples are barely the tip of the iceberg. This technology is public, encrypted, and readily available for anyone to use. It's already seeing widespread adoption in a number of areas. For example, forty-two (and counting) of the world's biggest financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and Credit Suisse, have formed a consortium to investigate the blockchain for speedier and more secure transactions.

As with major paradigm shifts that preceded it, the blockchain will create winners and losers. And while opportunities abound, the risks of disruption and dislocation must not be ignored.

Don Tapscott, the bestselling author of Wikinomics, and his son, blockchain expert Alex Tapscott, bring us a brilliantly researched, highly listenable, and utterly foundational book about the future of the modern economy. Blockchain Revolution is the business leaders' playbook for the next decade and beyond.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2016 Don Tapscott and Alex Tapscott (P)2016 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. Recorded by arrangement with Portfolio, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.

Going beyond BTC

Great book to get started with thinking through the application of the block chain tech to the world as a whole.
As most people, i became aware of the tech through BTC and other crypto currencies; the book helped me get familiar with potential broad applications of the tech.

Good primer on the subject

While some of the critical reviews here are valid, I think they largely miss the point. This is not a technical manual, nor an investing guide, but a decent introduction to a complicated subject. Yes the authors are true believers and yes there's more magical hand waving than I would like. But I learned a great deal and feel far more confident engaging with the subjects of block chain technology and cryptocurrency than I would otherwise.

Too many applications little detail

In general it is a good overview of the technology, but it lacks technical details. It also show many applications for it, however some of them would better belong to other realms like machine learning where the blockchain would be used only as a datastore without clear additional added value

Heavy on Vision - Light on Details

This a good high-level treatment of the promise of block chain technology. It is a bit light on technical detail, but those would be likely to overwhelm. Also it seems a bit overly optimistic in the current political environment.

Johnny One-note, but the Note IS Interesting

If you know nothing of blockchain technology fear not, this book will be an approachable read. I was hoping for a more detailed look into how the technology works. The author did not deliver that. At least, not in this book. What the author does deliver is a thorough view of how this disruptive technology might approach various problems. And that is where the One-note comes in. The resulting repetition has more to do with the fact that our financial systems are so fundamentally flawed and inefficient than it has to do with the author's creativity or the applicability of blockchain to problems. The author has an undeniable point, the financial system is in desperate need of revolution. The technology is naturally Liberitarian. The author tends to avoid politics. I was thankful for that.

The future is here

If you could sum up Blockchain Revolution in three words, what would they be?

Eye-opening

What other book might you compare Blockchain Revolution to and why?

The World is Flat - block chains increasingly cuts out the middlemen

Which scene was your favorite?

The Golden 8 - Blockchain Transformations of Financial Services

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

no, it take time for the concepts to sink in

Any additional comments?

Get ready, it is coming.

Great summary of the potential future

"Blockchain technology is to the dollar what the internet is to the paper."
Crypto-currencies will damage the banks and benefit consumers. The future of humanity looks bright!

Starts off with lots of woo woo but ends with legitimate concerns

At first the book seemed too full of hype and they seemed to apply the concept of a blockchain very very broadly but it was a fairly long book so they were able to add depth to their assertions. Towards they end they also lay out some history and legitimate concerns. Over a good book especially for those starting to get interested in blockchain, bitcoin, and cryptocurrency.

It is outdated now

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

no

Would you be willing to try another book from Don Tapscott and Alex Tapscott ? Why or why not?

only when those are very recent

What does Jeff Cummings bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Reader sound very excited

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

not a movie script

Any additional comments?

Good for someone to get basic understanding of the blockchain. Not technical, but provides good usecases

Don is a visionary with a well researched topic

Don in this book brings forth topics transcending core technology. He explores new business models, governance and use cases.