Nikola Tesla was one of history’s most prolific inventors, holding over 300 registered patents across 26 to 35 countries, depending on how you count patent families. Yet these numbers only hint at the breadth of his genius. Many of Tesla’s ideas were never formally patented, and some were stolen, lost, or buried by rivals with more wealth and influence.

So, what did Tesla actually invent? The answer: technologies that literally power the modern world.

Alternating Current (AC) Electricity: The system that lights up our homes and cities, replacing the inefficient direct current of his era.
Radio Technology: Long before Marconi received credit, Tesla was experimenting with wireless signals that laid the foundation for modern radio.
Wireless Communication: Tesla’s early concepts anticipated the technology behind Wi-Fi, cell phones, and global communications.
The Tesla Coil: The iconic high-voltage transformer, still used today in radio, X-ray machines, and dramatic science demonstrations.
Other Innovations: Induction motors, remote controls, neon lighting, hydroelectric power systems, and even bold early concepts for wireless power transmission.
Tesla’s imagination extended far beyond what others thought possible. He envisioned drawing energy from the Earth itself, creating “death ray” teleforce weapons, and establishing towers for global wireless communication — all in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Yet despite his world-changing contributions, Tesla died in 1943, alone in a modest New York City hotel room, broke and largely forgotten. The man who had illuminated the planet could not even afford his own light bill.

It is a striking paradox: Tesla’s inventions transformed human history, yet he never pursued wealth or fame. For him, the true power lay not in money, but in ideas. He believed knowledge itself could change the world — and, in many ways, it did.

Nikola Tesla reminds us that genius isn’t measured by fortune or recognition, but by the courage to dream bigger than anyone else—and the determination to turn those dreams into reality.