Edison was Thomas Edison, an American inventor and businessman who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was a major rival of Nikola Tesla, a Serbian-American inventor and engineer who is best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system. Edison and Tesla were both pioneers in the field of electricity, and their rivalry was legendary. Edison's most famous invention was the light bulb, while Tesla's most famous invention was the induction motor.