Early commercial applications of air conditioning were manufactured to cool air for industrial processing rather than for personal comfort.

 In 1902, Willis Carrier invented the first modern electrical air conditioning, in Syracuse, New York. It was designed to improve manufacturing process control in a printing plant, and it controlled not only temperature but also humidity.

The low heat and humidity were to help maintain consistent paper dimensions and ink alignment. Later Carrier's technology was applied to increase productivity in the workplace, and The Carrier Air Conditioning Company of America was formed to meet rising demand.

As time passed by, air conditioning came to be used to improve comfort in homes and automobiles.