Thomas Edison was an American inventor and businessman who held 1,093 US patents and was known as the 'Wizard of Menlo Park.' He invented the practical incandescent light bulb and the phonograph, and established the world's first industrial research laboratory, pioneering a systematic, team-based approach to invention.
Edison's electrical distribution system laid the groundwork for urban electrification, bringing electric light into homes and fundamentally transforming human life. His invention philosophy—I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that won't work—embodied his tenacious experimental spirit. His industrial research laboratory model became the template for modern R&D organizations worldwide.
