History Main / OneManIndustrialRevolution

* ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladies_Whose_Bright_Eyes Ladies Whose Bright Eyes]]'', written in 1911 had a mining engineer do the same, but finds he can change little.

* Creator/LeoFrankowski's ''The Cross Time Engineer'' series.

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* Noriko Null from ''Literature/BeyondTheImpossible''. She develops an incredibly cheap fusion reactor that is scheduled to completely phase out nuclear power and fossil fuels within a couple of years.
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* Mordred on the 'Astro-knights' island in ''{{VideoGame/Poptropica}}''.

* Subverted in the ''Literature/{{Discworld}}'' with Leonard of Quirm, who could create massive technological change had the Patrician not had him placed in a large, airy room for which he has the only key, where his failure to consider the consequences of his inventions can't do any harm. This is a man who created [[ILoveNuclearPower something]] for use in the mining industry "for when they want to move the mountains out of the way".

* On ''Series/StargateAtlantis'', [=McKay=] does this to/for a civilization he mistakes for a Sim game, bringing them from MedievalStasis to SteamPunk over the course of two years.
** Which doesn't sit well with his "game" opponent John Sheppard, whose country reflects his military mindset, and who constantly complains that [=McKay=] cheated by advancing them too fast.

* ComicBook/LexLuthor in ''ComicBook/SupermanRedSon'' is responsible for technology decades ahead of its time.
** In main DC continuity, the city of Metropolis was "upgraded" by Brainiac around New Year's Day 2000 to be centuries ahead of its time.

* With the help of an entity that makes it technically a crossover, [[Literature/LordOfTheRings Saruman]] in ''FanFic/SarumanOfManyDevices'' overturns the sword and bow warfare of the Third Age with the application of rifle-armed Uruk Dragoons.

* ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}} Time Travel'' supplement ''Alternate Earths'' has this. In the "Gernsback" parallel, UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla's inventions revolutionized the modern world. Downplayed in that the biggest change is him marrying Anne Morgan, the daughter of J.P. Morgan, in 1893, giving him access to his vast wealth to finance development of his wireless communication and power transmission technology[[note]]In Real Life, J.P. did fund the Wardenclyfe Tower when it started out as an intercontinental wireless communication tower, but he refused additional funding when Tesla wanted to expand it to work as a wireless power transmitter before it was even finished. And by "before it was even finished", I mean "Tesla decided to do this almost immediately after signing the contract and receiving the funds, which resulted in J.P. being (understandably) upset at what he saw as a breach of contract"[[/note]], giving access to earlier intercontinental wireless communication and viable wireless power transmission. This arguably makes it a more realistic take on this trope, as the main reason he is able to work on such a scale was because his wife was the daughter of the most powerful financiers of their time.

* ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}} Time Travel'' supplement ''Alternate Earths'' has this. In the "Gernsback" parallel, UsefulNotes/NikolaTesla's inventions revolutionized the modern world.

* If any present-day person is a contender for this title, it must be Elon Musk. He has, at a minimum, made electric cars practical, ushered in a new era of reusable spacecraft, developed a completely new mode of high-speed transportation (the "hyperloop"), and helped the use of renewable energy sources gain widespread acceptance. It is not unfair to say that he may be remembered as the architect of the 21st century's greatest innovations.

* In Scott Westerfeld's ''{{Literature/Leviathan}}'' trilogy, UsefulNotes/CharlesDarwin discovered not only the theory of evolution, but Mendelian genetics and DNA. This advanced the understanding of biology so quickly that by the onset of UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne, Britain and her allies (the "Darwinist" powers) have replaced much of the machinery in their societies [[OrganicTechnology with genetically engineered animals instead]], like a BioPunk version of TheFlintstones.

* One example that appears in real life is Samuel Slater, known as the "Father of the American Industrial Revolution." In the late 1700s, America was still very much pre-industrial, with very little manufacturing. At this time, England still maintained a strong monopoly on the textile industry, because of its mechanization of that industry. Slater was able to sneak plans for these machines out of England by memorizing the details of the plans. He came to the United States, and helped build these machines, and revolutionized the textile industry in the United States, kicking off the American industrial revolution, as his moniker indicates.

* Jade Curtiss of ''VideoGame/TalesOfTheAbyss'' developed [[spoiler:fomicry, a magical method. of instant, nearly exact cloning that can work on objects as well as people.]] This invention changed the very landscape of the world of Auldrant, and Jade was just a kid!

* One example that appears in real life is Samuel Slater, known as the "Father of the American Industrial Revolution." In the late 1700s, America was still very much pre-industrial, with very little manufacturing. At this time, England still maintained a strong monopoly on the textile industry, because of its mechanization of that industry. Slater was able to sneak plans for these machines out of England by memorizing the details of the plans. He came to the United States, and helped build these machines, and revolutionized the textile industry in the United states, kicking off the American industrial revolution, as his moniker indicates.

** Varrick apparently invented moving pictures (including the video camera, audio recording, and the film projector) and the first battlecruiser of his setting; he invents and produces an elaborate maglev train system, in a sticky situation MacGyvers an EMP, co-invents the flying mecha suit, and discovers how to utilize [[spoiler:spirit energy, the Avatar universe's rough equivalent to nuclear fusion. He suddenly grows a conscience when he realizes its potential to be weaponized.]] He's also named a unit of power after himself (and a unit of mass after his assistant). It is implied he has invented much more than these prior to the start of the series, although not all his ideas were winners. Due to his eccentricities, he only works one hour a day.

* Emperor Valkorion [[spoiler: aka the ex-Sith Emperor, Vitiate,]] from ''VideoGame/StarWarsTheOldRepublic: Knights of the Fallen Empire'' supposedly did this to/for the people of Zakuul (albeit raising them from something more like modern technology to an insanely automated droid-based industry that surpasses anything else in the galaxy). It remains to be seen precisely ''how'' he did this, whether it was from things [[EmperorScientist he personally invented]] at [[TimeAbyss some point in his centuries-plus life]] or used some form of LostTechnology that he discovered in Wild Space.

* Dornkirk, from ''Anime/TheVisionOfEscaflowne''; any number of {{Emperor Scientist}}s may have this going on as well.
** Which isn't much of a surprise when you realize Dornkirk is actually [[spoiler:[[BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy Sir Isaac Newton]]]].

* ''Manga/DrStone'' has its protagonists wake up several millenia after [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the entire human race was turned into stone]] − needless to say, all the machines and facilities have long crumbled by then. One of those protagonists, [[ImprobablyHighIQ Senku]], is a walking encyclopedia and a scientific genius. He ends up in a primitive human village and introduces certain modern mechanics, food, and systems to their civilization much earlier than they would have done it themselves.

* ''Manga/DrStone'' has its protagonists waking up several millenia after [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the entire human race was turned into stone]] − needless to say, all the machines and facilities have long crumbled by then. One of those protagonists, [[ImprobablyHighIQ Senku]], is a walking encyclopedia and a scientific genius. He ends up in a primitive human village and introduces certain modern mechanics, food, and systems to their civilization much earlier than they would have done it themselves.

* ''Manga/DrStone'' has its protagonists waking up several millenia after [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the entire human race was turned into stone.]] One of those protagonists, [[ImprobablyHighIQ Senku]], is a walking encyclopedia and a scientific genius. He ends up in a primitive human village and introduces certain modern mechanics, food, and systems to their civilization much earlier than they would have done it themselves.

* In her guise as the Crimson Scholar, [[LightNovel/MaoyuuMaouYuusha Maou]] is proving to be this to the Southern Kingdoms. In her case its slightly more realistic as she is moving gradually first with a Green Revolution in agriculture before moving on to the Guttenburg Press. Other characters also contribute such as the seeds of Liberalism and Alternate Currency.

* ''Manga/DrStone'' has its protagonists waking up several millenia after [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the entire human race was turned into stone.]] One of these protagonists, [[ImprobablyHighIQ Senku]], ends up in a primitive human village and introduces certain modern mechanics, food, and systems to their civilization much earlier than they would have done it themselves.

* ''Manga/DrStone'' has its protagonist waking up several millenia after [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt the entire human race was turned into stone.]] One of these protagonists, [[ImprobablyHighIQ Senku]], ends up in a primitive human village and introduces certain modern mechanics, food, and systems to their civilization much earlier than they would have done it themselves.

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* The DisneyFairies movies have Tinker Bell be this.

* ''Literature/AConnecticutYankeeInKingArthursCourt''. Hank develops bicycles, gunpowder, and even electricity, enriching the lives of the medieval peasants. He's also able to spread these technologies because he happens to meet the king early on and scares him into compliance with a conveniently timed eclipse. This allows him to set up a system of schools and manufacturing complexes which make his introduction of technology almost plausible. Until the Church declares Hank a heretic and abolishes his inventions.