The new economy refers to a unique period?mid-1990s through early 2000?that affected economic performance in the United States and led to the tech bubble and subsequent tech bust that contributed greatly to the recession of 2001-2002. This note describes the evolution of the tech bubble, the role of the Y2K problem, and the reasons for the bubble bursting in early 2000. Data are offered to show the impact this had on the broader economy as well as on the stock market for tech stocks.