The mad genius: Nikola Tesla’s life and loneliness

Today, his name is associated with innovation, brilliance, and eccentricity. But who was Tesla really, and why has his life become a symbol of both genius and tragedy?

EARLY YEARS

• Tesla was born on July 10, 1856, in the small village of Smiljan (modern-day Croatia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire).
• His mother, Georgina Tesla, crafted household tools and had an extraordinary memory. Tesla often credited her as the source of his creativity.
• As a child, Tesla experienced visual and auditory hallucinations. He claimed he could “see” inventions in his mind before actually building them.

A MIND AHEAD OF HIS TIME

Tesla was never satisfied with existing science — he always wanted to push boundaries.

• Alternating Current (AC) – Tesla’s invention revolutionized electricity distribution. While Thomas Edison insisted that Direct Current (DC) was superior, history proved Tesla right.
• Radio – although Guglielmo Marconi is often credited with inventing the radio, Tesla had already demonstrated the principles of wireless communication years earlier. The U.S. Supreme Court later acknowledged Tesla’s priority.
• Wireless Energy – Tesla’s greatest dream was to transmit electricity through the air without wires. He built the Wardenclyffe Tower in New York for this purpose, but the project was abandoned due to lack of funding.

A MAN WHO DIDN’T CARE ABOUT MONEY

Tesla had little interest in wealth or business. His obsession was invention.

• When Westinghouse, the company funding his AC system, faced financial collapse, Tesla tore up his own contractworth millions. He told them: “I don’t want your company to fail. I know the future belongs to our system.”
• Many of his patents could have made him a multi-millionaire, but Tesla never focused on profit.

TESLA VS. EDISON – THE WAR OF CURRENTS

Tesla’s most famous rivalry was with Thomas Edison.

• Edison promoted Direct Current (DC), while Tesla insisted on the superiority of Alternating Current (AC).
• Edison even staged public demonstrations where animals were electrocuted with AC to prove its danger.
• Ultimately, Tesla won. Today, our entire power grid runs on AC — his system.

THE ECCENTRICITIES

Tesla’s strange habits made him both fascinating and misunderstood.

• He feared germs and would use dozens of napkins each time he entered a hotel.
• He refused to eat meals served by women wearing pearl earrings.
• He never married, claiming he had no time for relationships: “I do not think you can name many great inventions that have been made by married men.”
• Tesla loved pigeons. In his later years, he fed them daily in New York parks and confessed he loved one pigeon “as a man loves a woman.”

THE FINAL YEARS

Tesla was gradually forgotten. His investors abandoned him, and many of his ideas were stolen or left unfinished.

• He spent his final years living in New York hotels, often unable to pay the bills.
• On January 7, 1943, he died in room 3327 of the New Yorker Hotel at the age of 86. His room contained only notebooks, books, and food for pigeons.
• Ironically, only after his death did the world recognize his greatness.

INTERESTING FACTS

• Tesla held more than 300 patents across various inventions.
• He spoke 8 languages.
• He reportedly slept only 2 hours per day.
• He was the first to imagine smartphones — describing a device that could transmit voice, text, and images wirelessly across the globe.

Nikola Tesla represents the paradox of human genius: a brilliant mind that gave the world electricity, radio, and futuristic visions, yet lived in isolation and died in poverty. His story reminds us that not all geniuses are celebrated in their lifetimes, and sometimes, the brightest minds walk alone.

Today, Tesla’s name powers not just an electric car company but also the imagination of millions who still believe in his dream of limitless energy.