^
An influence upon the field, yes; and, unfortunately, an infamous one in dealing with issues relating to alleged claims of sexual harassment.
https://lithub.com/what-to-make-of-i...dirty-old-man/
I loved his robot stories and the first three Foundation books, although Heinlein is the Sci-Fi writer I favored during my beginning years after having 'graduated' from the Sword & Sorcery niche of Fantasy fiction.