The invention of the light bulb was a cumulative effort by multiple inventors over decades. While Thomas Edison is often credited with inventing the light bulb, he actually developed the first commercially practical incandescent light bulb by improving on previous work. Key contributors include Joseph Swan, who created a working light bulb with a carbon filament before Edison, and earlier inventors like Humphry Davy, Warren de la Rue, and others who laid the groundwork. Edison’s main contribution was combining an effective filament, a better vacuum, and higher resistance to create a commercially viable product around 1879-1880. Edison also popularized the electric lighting system, which helped make the light bulb widely usable.