When were vapes invented?

E-cigarettes were not invented by a single person at a single point in time. Their development has spanned nearly a century and has been driven by the efforts of multiple key figures and inventors.
The following are several significant milestones in the development history of electronic cigarettes:
?? Concept Emergence Period (1920s - 1960s)
1927 (Patent Application) - Joseph Robinson (from New York): A New Yorker applied for a patent for a device called "Mechanical Butane Ignition Evaporator". This is considered the first documented concept related to electronic cigarettes, but this device was never commercialized and perhaps never even a prototype was made.
1963 (Invention) & 1965 (Patent) - Herbert A. Gilbert: He invented a "smokeless non-tobacco cigarette" and is regarded as the person who created the first device that was very similar to modern electronic cigarettes. His device produced flavored vapor through battery heating. However, due to the fact that people at that time had not yet widely recognized the dangers of smoking, his invention failed to find a company for commercial production.
⚙️ Early Exploration Period (1970s - 1990s)
1979 - Phil Ray and Norman Jacobson: Phil Ray, a pioneer in computers, collaborated with a doctor to create a device that relied on nicotine evaporation. This was the first attempt to introduce e-cigarette products to mainstream retailers. Although the device failed due to technical flaws, they coined the term "vape" (vaping).
The 1990s - The exploration of tobacco companies: Several tobacco companies began to actively research and apply for patents for nicotine inhalation devices. Around 1998, a major American tobacco company attempted to bring an e-cigarette product to the market to the FDA, but was rejected by the FDA on the grounds that it was an "unapproved drug delivery device".
?? The Birth of Modern Electronic Cigarettes (2000s)
2001 (Concept) & 2003 (Invention) - Hon Lik (China): Chinese pharmacist Hon Lik, in an effort to help his father, who was a heavy smoker, quit smoking and to find a safer way to consume nicotine, invented the first nicotine-based electronic cigarette product. He used piezoelectric elements to atomize the nicotine-containing propylene glycol solution.
2004 - Commercialization: Han Li established the brand "Ruyan" and launched the world's first commercially successful electronic cigarette onto the market.
?? Summary
The emergence of electronic cigarettes was the result of a long process of evolution: starting from the patent concept in 1927, evolving into the prototype invention in 1963, and then in 2003, Chinese pharmacist Han Li invented the first modern electronic cigarette based on nicotine, and finally successfully commercialized it in 2004.