Mark Rober

Mark Rober is a science and engineering YouTube channel launched by former NASA engineer Mark Rober in 2011. Initial attention arrived in October 2011 after a video demonstrating an optical illusion Halloween costume made with two tablet computers received 1.5 million views in a single day.

Recurring video series include multi-stage backyard obstacle courses built for wild squirrels and massive chemical demonstrations, such as a 2020 elephant toothpaste reaction that set a world volume record. In December 2018, Rober posted a video demonstrating a package trap disguised as consumer electronics that released fine glitter, pungent spray, and location coordinates to deter porch thieves. After viewers questioned several scenes, Rober acknowledged in December 2018 that helpers had recorded acquaintances without his knowledge, prompting him to edit out those segments. Engineering experiments also tackled international call center scams and carnival games using custom automated rigs.

In October 2019, Rober partnered with video creator MrBeast on Team Trees, raising 20 million dollars to plant trees globally, followed in October 2021 by Team Seas to fund marine cleanup operations. A live online fundraiser with Jimmy Kimmel in April 2021 generated 3 million dollars for autism support programs. That partnership led to Revengineers, a prank series that premiered on Discovery Channel in April 2023. In 2022, Rober launched CrunchLabs, an educational company that distributes monthly mechanical build kits to children.

Subscriber growth crossed 1 million accounts in April 2016 and reached 10 million accounts in December 2019, the same month total video views topped 1 billion. At the 26th Webby Awards in 2022, organizers named Rober the Film and Video Person of the Year. During the 12th Streamy Awards in December 2022, the channel secured four trophies, winning the Science and Engineering category alongside the Collaboration award shared with computer security investigator Jim Browning. In 2024, the FIRST Championship awarded Rober the FIRST Robotics Competition Founder's Award.