Just like the volunteers cleaning beaches in the Galápagos, many of the greatest innovations in human history came without a price tag. No patent. No profit. Just the desire to help.
From the wheel to the World Wide Web, countless breakthroughs were offered freely to humanity — not because someone was chasing wealth, but because they were inspired by something deeper: curiosity, compassion, or simply the joy of creation.
Freely Given, Freely Used
Here are just a few of the most influential inventions in history that were never patented:
1. The World Wide Web
Tim Berners-Lee, the man behind the World Wide Web, could have become one of the richest individuals on the planet. But instead of patenting his invention, he gave it to the world — open and free. Thanks to that act of generosity, we now have instant access to global knowledge, communication, and connection. Imagine if every website needed to pay a license fee just to exist.
2. Penicillin
When Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin in 1928, he didn’t patent it. He believed it would be unethical to profit from something that could save so many lives. Today, it’s estimated that antibiotics have saved hundreds of millions of lives since their discovery — a ripple effect of one man’s integrity and compassion.
3. The Kalashnikov Rifle (AK-47)
While controversial, it’s worth noting that Mikhail Kalashnikov never patented his design. His motivation, as he often claimed, was not profit, but to defend his country. Though the consequences have been tragic and complex, the story adds to the larger picture: not all inventors seek wealth — some are driven by duty, ideology, or principle.
4. Open Source Software
From Linux to Firefox to countless other tools and frameworks, our digital infrastructure today runs on open-source software — systems that were never patented, but shared. These projects thrive on community, collaboration, and a belief in transparency. Much like in nature, where one tree’s shade benefits all, these tools are nurtured by a culture of abundance.
Nature Holds No Patents
In fact, we might say the greatest “inventions” of all aren’t human-made at all.
Oxygen. Photosynthesis. The way coral builds reefs. The mycelial networks beneath the forest floor.
Life on Earth operates in balance, in beauty, in generosity — without ownership or contracts.
No one sends a bill for the sunlight.
And maybe that’s our clue.
Invention Beyond Profit
In my book Waking Up: A Journey Towards a New Dawn for Humanity, we imagine a world where innovation flows freely — not as a tool for profit, but as a gift to the whole. Where knowledge is shared. Where ideas are born from joy, from curiosity, from love, just like the ideas mentioned in this article was born and shared.
The Natural Exchange System (NES) described in the book doesn’t require patents or property rights. It operates on a different principle: that people contribute because they care. Because it feels good to give something meaningful to the world.
This isn’t utopia. This is already happening.
We already see open-source coders, volunteer inventors, makerspaces, and communities coming together to build tools, solutions, and art — not for money, but for meaning.
The Greatest Invention of All
Maybe this world I describe in Waking Up — a world without money, where we share freely — isn’t as far-fetched as it seems.
After all, we already freely share our time through volunteering.
We already freely share our ideas through open-source projects, collaborative science, and unpatented breakthroughs.
Maybe we’ve been building the foundations of this new world all along.
Quietly. Organically. Without fanfare.
The moneyless sharing world of Waking Up might sound radical — but when you look closely, its seeds are already here. The spirit is alive. The proof is all around us.
What if the most important invention isn’t a device or discovery — but a mindset?
A way of living?
What if the most powerful innovation we could make… is to invent a new society?
One where ideas are shared, not sold.
Where intelligence is liberated.
Where no child’s future is limited by licensing fees or paywalls.
We’ve already seen glimpses.
We already have it in us.
The rest is just a matter of choosing the world we want to invent next.
Would you like to dive into the experience of the billionaire Benjamin Michaels, who is shocked waking up in this world mentioned above? If so, feel free to order the book here.