The Dot-com crash is the name given to the U.S. stock-market collapse associated with the technology bubble’s bursting around 2000.
During the late 1990s, investors poured money into internet businesses, often valuing companies on expected future growth rather than profits. The Nasdaq Composite, heavily weighted toward technology shares, climbed rapidly and reached an intraday peak of 5,132.52 on March 10, 2000.
Many companies had weak revenues, unsustainable costs, or business plans that depended on continual investor funding. As interest rates rose and enthusiasm faded, share prices collapsed. The Nasdaq lost roughly 78% of its value from its 2000 peak to its October 2002 low. Numerous startups failed, while some surviving firms became important long-term businesses.
The crash did not mean the internet itself was a failed technology. Instead, it showed that a transformative technology can coexist with unrealistic valuations. Amazon and other survivors eventually grew into major companies, but their later success did not justify the prices assigned to every early internet venture.