Thomas Edison vs. Nikola Tesla

Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla are brilliant inventors and rivals who brought many discoveries that made modern technology possible to the world. Some may argue that one of the inventors was better or more ingenious than the other since his inventions brought more benefits to himself or society. However, Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison were equally brilliant despite the different approaches to work and the use of their inventions.

The achievements of Edison and Tesla are difficult to compare because of their approaches to scientific work and the application of their results. Tesla’s wireless transmission technology is used today in most technologies, from remote controls to computers, and alternating current forms the basis of the modern electrical system (Newhall, 2013). However, Tesla received practically nothing from his inventions as he was primarily a scientist but not an entrepreneur (Newhall, 2013). Nevertheless, this fact does not diminish the merits of the inventor, who allowed the world to control electricity and use it for its own needs.

At the same time, Edison had fewer achievements as an inventor than Tesla, but his skills also brought him material profit. Edison thought not only as a scientist but also as an entrepreneur, which allowed him to develop a whole system of electric lighting, including light bulbs and electricity generators (Greene, 2013). Edison and his team launched the first modern electric utility, and the scientist patented 1,100 patents in his name (Pierce, n.d.). Consequently, Edison made electric lighting possible and became a very successful businessman.

Therefore, Edison and Tesla were equally brilliant inventors who gave humanity the opportunity to lighthouses and create thousands of devices that run on electric energy. In fact, Edison and Tesla made the world that exists today possible with their discoveries and competition. Even though inventors had different numbers of patents or financial success, their inventions are interrelated and equally important to humanity.

References

Greene. M. (2013). VIDEO: Who was the better inventor, Tesla or Edison? Energy.gov. Web.

Newhall, M. (2013). Top 11 things you didn’t know about Nikola Tesla. Energy.gov. Web.

Pierce, E. R. (2013). Top 8 things you didn’t know about Thomas Alva Edison. Energy.gov. Web.