Bitcoin Pizza Event

Although Bitcoin was invented in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto, the currency was originally not used for direct commerce due to its uncertain value and geographically distributed fan base.

On May 22nd 2010, two Bitcoin enthusiasts: Floridian Laszlo Hanyecz, also known as laszlo, a contributing developer to the Bitcoin source code, and UK resident Jeremy Sturdivant, also known as jercos, arranged a public transaction that is generally considered to be the first known commercial transaction on the Bitcoin Blockchain. Two pizzas originally purchased from Papa John's Pizza were exchanged for ten thousand bitcoins.

On May 17th, Laszlo had posted a topic on the BitcoinTalk forum, outlining his desire to consume a pizza and his offer to trade a sum of Bitcoins for the privilege.

I'll pay 10,000 bitcoins for a couple of pizzas.. like maybe 2 large ones so I have some left over for the next day. I like having left over pizza to nibble on later. You can make the pizza yourself and bring it to my house or order it for me from a delivery place, but what I'm aiming for is getting food delivered in exchange for bitcoins where I don't have to order or prepare it myself, kind of like ordering a 'breakfast platter' at a hotel or something, they just bring you something to eat and you're happy! ...

Some days after his initial request, Laszlo reported that Jeremy had fulfilled his order, and he had sent Jeremy a sum of Bitcoin that while commensurate with the purchase at the time, would over the next few years rise to top ten million dollars in value.

This event was considered so noteworthy that many Bitcoin enthusiasts created an annual event around the May 22 date, to make a point of purchasing pizza for Bitcoin in remembrance of the first step into a Bitcoin world.