Tesla

As a young child, Nikola Tesla saw a flash of electricity when petting his cat, hinting at his future fascination with the power. This early experience sparked his curiosity and set him on the path to become an inventor and scientist. The narrator suggests that Tesla's innate sensitivity to electricity was a recurring theme throughout his life.

In 1884, Tesla begins working in New York City for Thomas Edison, who doesn’t seem to regard him highly. Tesla faces struggles and financial hardships during this period, but remains determined to develop his ideas despite Edison's dismissiveness. Tensions between Tesla and Edison begin to develop as they compete over electrical inventions.

Tesla pitches his induction motor to potential investors, receiving high praise for his innovation. With the support of his friend Anthony Szigeti, Tesla begins working on his motor, aiming to revolutionize electrical engineering. His inventions begin to gain recognition within the scientific community.

Tesla meets Anne Morgan, the daughter of financier JP Morgan, and later presents his findings to her father. Impressed by Tesla's ideas, Morgan invests in Tesla's inventions, providing crucial financial backing. This support helps Tesla move forward with his groundbreaking work on electrical systems.

George Westinghouse purchases Tesla’s patents for his electrical inventions and brings Tesla to Pittsburgh to oversee production. The rivalry between Tesla’s alternating current and Edison’s direct current heats up, with Edison championing the latter. Tesla’s AC system begins to demonstrate its potential as a viable power supply.

Edison dismisses Tesla’s AC system, insisting direct current is superior and campaigning against Tesla’s technology. Despite the opposition, Tesla’s alternating current gains acceptance, especially after powering the 1893 World’s Fair. The technological race between the two systems becomes a central theme of their rivalry.

William Kemmler becomes the first person to be executed using electric induction, but the process is gruesomely botched, damaging Edison’s reputation. Edison blames the doctors and attempts to discredit Tesla’s electrical systems, intensifying the public debate over electric power.

In 1893, Tesla’s alternating current is successfully used to power the World’s Fair, showcasing its safety and efficiency. Edison’s efforts to discredit AC are overshadowed by its impressive performance. This event marks a turning point, establishing Tesla’s technology as a leading electrical system.

Tesla relocates to Colorado, where he develops the Tesla coil. His invention demonstrates powerful electrical discharges, but also causes accidents, such as blowing up a local generator. Tesla offers to pay for damages, showing his commitment to his innovations despite setbacks.

Tesla showcases his technological potential to JP Morgan, convincing him to invest $100,000 in his projects. Despite skepticism from Morgan, Tesla’s ideas about using his machines to benefit the world begin to gain traction. Tesla’s ambitious visions continue to drive his research forward.

Tesla discusses developing technology to map brain waves for mind control and signals from Mars, showcasing his increasingly visionary and experimental ideas. These pursuits highlight his desire to push the boundaries of science, even as some see his ambitions as overreach. Tesla’s reputation as a pioneering scientist is solidified.

As Tesla’s inventions and ambitions grow more ambitious, he becomes increasingly isolated. He moves to the French countryside to work on health initiatives for children and away from the electrical world he once aimed to revolutionize. He eventually dies alone at the age of 87, reflecting on a life of groundbreaking yet often overlooked achievements.