The invention of the lightbulb was a cumulative effort involving multiple inventors over decades, rather than the accomplishment of a single person. Key figures include:
- Humphry Davy, who in 1802 created the first electric light called the "electric arc lamp" using carbon electrodes, though it was not practical for everyday use.
- Joseph Swan, an English chemist, who developed a more affordable incandescent light bulb with carbonized paper filaments in the mid-19th century.
- Thomas Edison, who refined previous designs and created the first commercially viable light bulb in 1879 by improving the carbon filament and vacuum technology, enabling widespread electric lighting.
Edison also bought patents from earlier inventors and worked together with Swan after a patent dispute, forming the Edison & Swan United Electric Light Company (Ediswan). The light bulb's invention thus spans contributions from Alessandro Volta, James Bowman Lindsay, Warren de la Rue, and others, with Edison best known for making a practical, market-ready version.
