The concept of zero wasn't a single invention, but the credit for the initial zero concept goes to India. Around 500 AD, Indian mathematicians, like Aryabhata,

The concept of zero wasn't a single invention, but the credit for the initial zero concept goes to India. Around 500 AD, Indian mathematicians, like Aryabhata, figured out a way to use zero as a placeholder in their number system. This was a huge deal because before that, nobody had a good way to show "nothing" in a way that worked with other numbers. Even though others like the Arabs built on this idea later, India got the whole zero ball rolling.