Tesla Tore Up Royalty Fortune

Nikola Tesla sold his AC motor and power-system patents to American industrialist George Westinghouse for $60,000 in stocks, cash, and royalties tied to electricity sales. When Westinghouse later feared financial ruin and asked Tesla for relief, Tesla tore up the royalty contract. The decision cost Tesla millions he was already owed and far more that could have followed, but it helped save the Westinghouse Company.

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