American inventors have had a major impact on the world. Nikola Tesla, with five letters, was a Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, physicist, and futurist best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system. Elias Howe, with nine letters, was an American inventor and sewing machine pioneer who invented the first practical sewing machine with a lockstitch design. Otis, with four letters, was an American industrialist and inventor who founded the Otis Elevator Company. John Deere, with five letters, was an American blacksmith and manufacturer who founded Deere & Company, one of the largest agricultural and construction equipment manufacturers in the world. Thomas Edison, with six letters, was an American inventor and businessman who developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb.