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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
The war of currents. Part 2: Edison’s revenge (or why in 2025 both were right)
Haven’t read Part 1? It’s about the elephant that was killed, Edison’s dirty tricks, and Tesla’s victory. Start there – otherwise you won’t understand anything.
Chapter 4: PLOT TWIST 2025 – The Return of the King
Okay, sit back and relax. We’re about to get a little bit of a surprise.
The year is 1896: Tesla has won. AC took over the world. The story is over.
2025: Edison’s direct current is making a comeback. And it’s coming back EVERYWHERE.
How did this happen? Let’s take it one step at a time.
Electric cars: DC on wheels
A Tesla Model 3 is driving by outside the window. Or a Nissan Leaf. It doesn’t matter.
What matters is this: Every electric vehicle on the planet runs on direct current (DC).
Every single one. Without exception.
Why: Batteries store only DC. It’s physics – chemical reactions work in the same direction. Plus, DC motors are easier to control (speed, torque, efficiency).
Technical details:
- Voltage: 400-800 volts DC (Tesla Model S Plaid – up to 900V)
- Energy consumption: 50-100+ kWh
- Charging: AC from the network → converter converts to DC for the battery
And here’s the biggest irony in the history of technology:
The largest electric car company is called TESLA. In honor of Nikola Tesla, the inventor of alternating current.
But their cars run on Edison’s direct current.
Somewhere in his grave, Thomas Edison is laughing so hard that his coffin is shaking.
Data centers: A quiet revolution
You are currently reading this online. The text is on a server. The server is in a data center.
Fact: Data centers consume 1-2% of the world’s electricity. And this number is growing every year.
Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook – they all faced the problem: each AC↔DC conversion = 5-15% energy loss.
The old scheme (in most cases):
- Power plant → AC
- Transmission → AC
- Data center receives AC
- Each server: AC → DC (losses!)
- Server runs on DC
New scheme (Google, Amazon, Microsoft):
- Power plant → AC
- Transmission → AC
- One big AC → DC conversion at the input
- DC distribution directly to the servers
- Savings: 20-30% of electricity!
When you have a 100 megawatt data center, 20% savings = 20 megawatts = millions of dollars per year.
In Google’s 2023 technical reports, there is a phrase: “DC distribution proved more efficient for our infrastructure needs.”
Edison in 1890: “DC is more efficient for local networks!”
Everyone: “Ha ha, grandpa!”
Google in 2025: “DC proved more efficient for our needs.”
Edison: “Who’s the grandfather now?”
Solar energy + USB-C: DC everywhere
Solar panels generate DC. The physics of the photoelectric effect cannot be otherwise.
Batteries store DC.
The LED lamps inside run on DC.
Your phone, laptop, tablet – everything is DC.
An absurd scheme of the present:
Solar panels (DC)
→ inverter converts DC→AC (losses of 5-10%)
→ AC goes to the home network
→ Each device converts AC→DC (another 10-15% loss)
→ The device works on DC
See? DC → AC → DC. Two conversions. Twice the losses.
The future (which is already starting):
Companies like EMerge Alliance have created standards for DC distribution in homes (380V DC). Solar panels → battery → DC sockets → devices. No conversion.
USB-C Power Delivery can deliver up to 240 watts of DC. This is enough for laptops, monitors, and most consumer electronics.
Modern offices are installing desks with USB-C ports. One cable – and you power everything. With DC power.
Edison dreamed of DC houses in the 1880s. We are returning to them in the 2020s.
HVDC: DC takes revenge in long-distance transmission
And now the craziest part.
Tesla defeated Edison in the 1890s precisely because AC could be transmitted over long distances, and DC could not.
But in the 21st century, HVDC (High Voltage Direct Current) appeared – high-voltage direct current.
Thanks to modern power electronics (IGBT transistors, thyristors), we can now effectively convert AC↔DC even at high voltages.
And guess what: DC has proven to be the preferred mode for ultra-long-distance transmission!
Why?
- No reactive losses (which AC has)
- Lower losses in wires at a distance of 1000+ km
- Submarine cables: AC has huge losses due to capacitance
Real HVDC lines in 2025:
China – Changzhou-Guizhou:
- 2,400 km (!)
- ±800,000 volts DC
- 8,000 megawatts of capacity
Brazil – Belo Monte:
- 2,500 km through the Amazon jungle
- ±600 kV DC
Europe – submarine cables:
- Norway ↔ Germany: 623 km under the North Sea
- UK ↔ France, Belgium, Norway
- All on HVDC because AC is inefficient underwater
The irony: These lines transmit energy more efficiently than AC over such distances.
Tesla beat Edison in 1890 because there was no technology for DC conversion.
In 2025, these technologies are available. And DC is taking revenge.
Chapter 5: What would they say if they saw this?
Let’s fantasize. I’m taking Edison and Tesla to 2025.
Edison grabs my iPhone.
“This is a phone? Where are the wires?”
“LED screen. 3.7 volts DC.”
Edison stares: “DC?! TESLA, DID YOU HEAR?! Their devices are on my DC!”
I lead him to a Tesla Model S in the parking lot.
“Electric car. Battery. 800 volts DC.”
Edison jumps up and down with joy: “I WON! Where is that Serb?”
“By the way, the company is called Tesla. In honor of Nikola Tesla.”
“WHAT?”
“Yes. But it runs on your DC.”
Edison is quiet. Then bursts out laughing: “That’s the best irony I’ve ever heard in my life! Even in his triumph, he lost!”
Tesla looks at the outlet.
“AC! My system! 99% of the world’s power grids!”
I give him the phone: “But it works on DC. And the charger converts your AC to Edison DC.”
Tesla is surprised: “Wait… you are SPECIFICALLY converting my AC to DC in every device?”
“Yes. With a loss of 10-15%.”
“But that’s a waste! Why not DC from the beginning?”
“It’s ironic that you ask that. We are now returning to this.”
I show the Tesla Model S: “An electric car. In your honor. But on DC.”
Tesla smiles: “Ironic…”
One conversation that explains everything
Imagine: a cafe. Edison and Tesla are drinking coffee (Tesla requires the cup to be filled to a volume divisible by 3).
Edison: “Tesla, I admit it: you were right about power transmission. AC was better for the 1900s.”
Tesla: “Thank you. That’s fair.”
Edison: “But I was right, too. DC for consumption. Batteries. Electronics.”
Tesla: “…true. I didn’t foresee the electronics age.”
Edison: “And I didn’t foresee power electronics for easy AC↔DC conversion.”
Tesla: “We were both limited by the technology of our time.”
I interject: “Guys, the modern world uses BOTH of your technologies. AC for transmission. DC for consumption. Not one winner. Both.”
Long pause.
Edison: “Tesla, I’m sorry about the elephant.”
Tesla: “…accepted.”
Edison: “And also for that $50,000 joke.”
Tesla: “That was a bit of a joke, too.”
Edison: “I’m sorry. Business… fear… I was making excuses.”
Tesla: “I regret some things too. I spent millions of Westinghouse’s money on Wardencliff.”
Я: “Without that ‘failure’ there would be no Wi-Fi. Your coils are the basis of wireless communication.”
Tesla: (smiling) “So it wasn’t in vain?”
Edison: “And my DC is back in the 21st century.”
Tesla: “And my AC is still powering the world.”
Both at the same time: “So who won?”
Я: “BOTH. That’s the bottom line.”
They look at each other. They smile.
Edison: “Maybe the world needed both of us.”
Tesla: “Without you, I would have died in poverty sooner.”
Edison: “Without you, I would have been left with limited DC.”
Waiting.
Edison: “To the future.”
Tesla: “To the past.”
Together: “To electricity.” ⚡
⚛️ Fun fact:
While Edison and Tesla were fighting over how to transmit electricity, no one really knew WHAT was moving through those wires.
The electron was discovered only in 1897, after the end of the War of the Currents.
Imagine: they built power plants, killed elephants, invested millions in infrastructure… without understanding the basic nature of electricity. It’s like building an airplane without knowing that atmospheric pressure exists.
And when Thomson finally “saw” the electron, it provoked even more drama: it turned out that the atom was not indivisible, as had been believed for thousands of years. Moreover, the electron turned out to be both a particle and a wave. It could be in several places at the same time. Physicists were going crazy with these findings.
The scientific community was split. The debate was so fierce that Einstein could not accept the quantum nature of the electron until the end of his life, with his famous phrase: “God does not play dice!”
You want to know:
- How did Thomson prove the existence of something that no one could see?
- Why did the discovery of the electron destroy all of classical physics?
- What is the story behind the smallest particle that rules the world?
Read the story of the discovery of the electron – there is drama, competition, and unpredictable twists and turns there too →
Chapter 6: Lessons from the war of the currents
This story is not just a historical fable. It’s a case study with life lessons.
Lesson #1: Technical excellence ≠ business success
Tesla was a brilliant engineer. Edison was a better businessman.
The result: Tesla died poor, but his technology won. Edison died rich, even though his technology “lost”.
For you: A cool product without a business model = a beautiful failure. Find a co-founder who is strong where you are weak.
Lesson #2: “Best” depends on the context
In the 1890s: AC is better for transmission.
In the 2020s: DC is better for storage, consumption, ultra-long distance (HVDC).
Conclusion: There is no universal “best”. There is a “best for this case”.
When someone says “my solution is the best for everything,” they are either a fool or a liar.
Lesson #3: Dirty PR works (unfortunately)
Edison’s fear campaign was brutal and… effective. Public executions of animals, Westinghouse, manipulation – it all worked.
A bitter lesson: Emotions are more influential than facts in the public consciousness.
But: in the short term, it works. In the long run, the truth wins – AC has become the standard no matter what.
Modern parallels:
- “5G causes cancer” (not confirmed, but people are afraid)
- “GMOs are poisonous” (science says no, but there is fear)
- “Vaccines are dangerous” (one fake trial in 1998 still causes distrust)
Dirty PR works. But you choose whether to use it.
Lesson #4: Winner today ≠ winner tomorrow
1890: DC loses → 1900-2000: AC dominates → 2025: DC returns
Technologies are cyclical. What is “outdated” today may become relevant again tomorrow when conditions change.
Examples:
- Vinyl: died in the 1990s (CDs), resurrected in the 2010s (audiophiles)
- Mechanical keyboards: replaced by membrane keyboards, now popular again
- Film cameras: almost disappeared, now a cult among photographers
Lesson #5: Sometimes “losing” = winning later
DC “lost” in the 1890s, but it didn’t disappear. It waited for the world to change – batteries, electronics, power electronics. In the 2020s, it is making a comeback.
Warning: Maybe your idea is just bad, not “premature”. It’s an art to know the difference.
Lesson #6: Competition makes everyone better
Imagine: there would have been no war of currents. Edison would have quietly developed DC without competition.
The result: Electrification would have been slower. Less innovation.
The war, for all its brutality, accelerated progress. Thanks to competition, both technologies became much more advanced.
A modern example: iPhone vs Android – competition improves both platforms
The final: Who really won?
We have gone through 140 years of history. From killed elephants to electric cars. From public executions to HVDC lines.
It’s time to answer: who won?
The short answer is.
Both of us.
The long answer
The consumer won. The world won.
Take a look at your typical day:
Morning:
- Alarm on your phone (DC battery)
- Turn on the light (AC from the socket → LED to DC)
- Charging your phone (AC → DC)
Tesla smiles (AC in the sockets)
Edison smiles (DC in devices)
Daytime:
- You drive an electric car (DC battery 800V)
- Using a laptop (AC → DC inside)
- Servers run on DC
Edison is smiling
Tesla is smiling
Evening:
- Watching Netflix (servers on DC, TV converts AC→DC)
- Going to bed under an LED lamp (AC→DC)
Both are smiling.
The biggest irony
The Tesla company:
- Named after Nikola Tesla (inventor of AC)
- Produces cars based on Edison’s DC
- Charged by Tesla’s AC network
- Which is being converted into Edison’s DC
It’s the best ending we could have come up with.
Elon Musk, perhaps without realizing it, has created a symbol of reconciliation between two technologies.
One final thought.
History is never black and white.
Edison was not a thief. He was a businessman fighting for survival. He used dirty methods, yes. But he gave the world the light bulb, the phonograph, and the movies.
Tesla was not a saint. He was a genius, yes. But he was a naive businessman with unrealistic expectations.
Both were human beings. With advantages and disadvantages.
And most importantly: Thanks to their war, we got a world where you have a device in your pocket that uses the technologies of both.
The war of the currents was not in vain. It was necessary.
Without competition, there would be no innovation.
And finally.
The next time you turn on the light, charge your phone, or get into an electric car, remember two geniuses.
One created the transmission system. The other created the consumption system.
Together they gave us the electric world.
The final question!
Your smartphone. 3.7V DC Edison.
Your socket. 230V AC by Tesla.
In between is a charger that converts AC→DC.
If not for both, you wouldn’t be reading this right now.
So, the final question: Whose side are you on?
⚡ AC (Team Tesla)
⚡ DC (Team Edison)
Write in the comments!
And tag a friend to let them know that their iPhone is powered by 140-year-old technology.
P.S. If you read this far, you’re a legend. Thank you for spending your time on this story.
Now go charge your phone and think about the irony of it all.
Sources
- “Edison” by Edmund Morris
- “Tesla: Man Out of Time” by Margaret Cheney
- IEEE History Center Archives
- Google Efficiency Report 2023
- ABB, Siemens HVDC Technical Documentation
- Smithsonian Magazine: “The War of Currents”
If you like it, share it!
Let your friends know what a crazy story is behind every socket ⚡