Final answer:
The sculptor credited with inventing the Renaissance style that Michelangelo later perfected is a) Donatello, known for his work in bas-relief and influential sculptures such as the bronze David.
Step-by-step explanation:
The sculptor who may have invented the Renaissance style that Michelangelo later perfected is Donatello. Donatello was a pioneering Early Renaissance artist who revolutionized sculpture with his work, especially with his iconic freestanding male like David, sculpted from bronze. His training and studies of Roman art significantly influenced his artistic development. Donatello's sculpture of David, created in the 1430s, predates Michelangelo's own famed David and is indicative of his unique style that blended classical forms with a more naturalistic approach.
Donatello's artistry laid the groundwork for the developments in perspective, three-dimensionality, and the human figure that Michelangelo would later bring to new heights during the High Renaissance. While Michelangelo is renowned for works such as the Pieta and his own version of David, it was a) Donatello's innovations that helped set the stage for these monumental achievements in Renaissance sculpture.