Edison (et al) especially early on, had to spend huge amounts of time raising capital. Our remembrance of history is often rosier than the reality. Bell Labs i

Edison (et al) especially early on, had to spend huge amounts of time raising capital. Our remembrance of history is often rosier than the reality. Bell Labs in many ways was self funding, 80% of the research the labs did was unglamorous, and wasn't basic research, it was things to directly further the business of AT&T, the Labs did product development and software development directly for Western Electric, which is what the BOC's paid a license for back to the Labs for, and which funded the whole of the Labs operations. The occasionally glamorous high profile basic research that the Labs did was something AT&T did partially as a public good, and to avoid antitrust scrutiny as well as to develop new foundational innovations for its primary business. Unless you have a deep knowledge of AT&T's pre divestiture organizational structure, these facts are just not well or widely known.