When Mark Rober, former NASA engineer turned YouTube sensation, walked onto the main stage of the WAVES Summit 2025 in Mumbai, the excitement was palpable. Students from across India, content creators, educators, and aspiring inventors gathered to witness a once-in-a-lifetime moment—an interactive keynote from the man who made science not only accessible but thrilling.
Rober, best known for his elaborate science experiments like the infamous glitter bomb and world-record-breaking elephant toothpaste, delivered a keynote that wasn’t just a talk—it was a spectacle. The WAVES Summit, hosted at Jio world convention centre, was the largest STEM-focused event in India this year. It brought together thousands of attendees under one roof with a single mission: to celebrate curiosity, creativity, and innovation in science.
Dressed in his signature science-meets-casual hoodie and jeans, Mark opened his keynote with the story that started it all—his journey from working on the Mars Curiosity Rover at NASA to launching a YouTube channel aimed at making science fun. “I didn’t plan on becoming a YouTuber,” Rober admitted with a smile. “I just wanted to make one video that explained how to fill a watermelon with liquid nitrogen… and the internet loved it.”
But the keynote wasn’t just about storytelling—it was a masterclass in blending showmanship with scientific insight. Using high-speed cameras, sensors, and remote-triggered setups, Rober recreated live versions of some of his most viral experiments on stage. He demonstrated the physics behind chain reactions using a jumbo-sized Newton’s cradle and explained the engineering challenges behind building the world’s largest Nerf gun.
Perhaps the most jaw-dropping moment was his live demo of a glitter bomb built specifically for the Indian audience. “This version,” he laughed, “uses colors from Holi and throws in a little Bollywood flair.” As the device exploded in a cloud of multicolored glitter, the crowd erupted with applause. It was science, performance, and cultural nod all rolled into one.
Beyond the entertainment, Rober’s message was clear: “Science is cool because it helps you see the world differently. It’s not about memorizing formulas, it’s about understanding how things work—and how you can change the world with that knowledge.”
Rober also took time to highlight the ingenuity he had seen during his India tour so far. From a low-cost water purifier built by rural school students in Rajasthan to AI-powered crop monitoring devices designed by college teams in Pune, he emphasized that India was brimming with what he called “Jugaad Science”—innovative problem-solving using minimal resources. “That’s the kind of thinking we need globally,” he said.
Part of Rober’s visit to India included launching the “Jugaad Contest 2025,” a nationwide competition inviting students and creators to submit simple, clever inventions with a real-world impact. The contest saw over 12,000 entries in just the first two weeks. At the summit, Rober revealed the first shortlisted projects and spoke about how impressed he was by the originality of the submissions.
Another highlight of the event was Rober’s fireside chat with four of India’s biggest YouTube personalities—CarryMinati, Slayy Point, TechBurner, and Curly Tales. The panel discussed how science can intersect with entertainment, lifestyle, and even comedy. “The way to get people interested in STEM,” Rober said, “isn’t to lecture them. It’s to surprise them, make them laugh, and let them ask their own questions.”
The presence of cricketer Hardik Pandya added an extra dash of star power. In a surprise collaboration, Rober and Pandya conducted a physics experiment analyzing the motion of a cricket ball using motion sensors and cameras. “Science is in everything—even in the way you bowl a yorker,” Rober said, drawing laughter and appreciation from both cricket fans and science buffs.
For the thousands who attended in person—and the millions more watching through live streams and social media—the keynote wasn’t just about science; it was about possibility. It was about seeing science not as a subject in a textbook but as a living, breathing force that touches every part of our lives.
As the lights dimmed and Rober exited the stage to a standing ovation, one thing was clear: he hadn’t just delivered a keynote—he had ignited a spark. A spark that promised to fuel a new generation of Indian scientists, engineers, and creators who believe that curiosity is the greatest superpower of all.