In a world dominated by light bulbs that waste most of their energy as heat, the advent of LEDs promised a revolution in lighting efficiency. Yet, for decades, a crucial piece of the puzzle was missing – the blue LED. This is the story of Shūji Nakamura, a Japanese engineer who defied industry norms and made three radical breakthroughs to create the world's first blue LED, setting off a chain reaction that transformed the lighting industry and earned him a Nobel Prize.