Nib of a ballpoint pen. Coloured scanning electron micrograph of the ball at the nib of a ballpoint pen. The ballpoint pen was invented in 1938 by Hungarian journalist Laszlo Biro. Production began in 1944 and it was quickly adopted by the British Royal Air Force to resolve the problems that pilots had in writing when flying at high altitudes. In 1953 Bich, a French baron, developed a process for producing ballpoint pens at a low cost. His design has been immensely successful with millions being made. Magnification: x14 at 5x7cm size. Magnification; x28 at 9cm x15.5cm size.