Mark B. Rober is an American YouTuber, social media celebrity, engineer, inventor, product designer, and writer.
Rober is best known for his YouTube videos, which are mainly focused around do-it-yourself (DIY) gadgets and popular science. He previously worked as an engineer and inventor with NASA, as well as a product designer for Apple, before launching his social media career.
Mark Rober Quick Facts
Full Name: | Mark B. Rober |
Popular Name: | Mark Rober |
Nicknames: | N/A |
Birth Date: | 1980 or 1981 |
Age: | 42 – 43 years |
Parents: | Unknown |
Siblings: | Unknown |
Birth Place: | Place of Birth: |
Nationality: | American |
Ethnicity: | White |
Religion: | Christianity |
Education: | Brigham Young University and the University of Southern California |
Marital Status: | Married to Lisa Rober |
Sexual Orientation: | Straight |
Children: | One; a son |
Net Worth: | USD 7 million |
Source of Wealth: | Vlogging, Social Media, Engineering, Inventing, Product Design, Writing, Endorsement Deals, and Other Ventures |
Height: | 6′ 1″ (1.83 m) |
Weight: | In kilograms: 62 kg; In pounds: 136 lbs. |
Early Life and Career Information
Early Life
Mark B. Rober was born in 1980 or 1981, in Orange County, California, United States. Not much is known about the identity of his parents or siblings (if any).
Rober graduated from Brigham Young University with a mechanical engineering degree. He later earned his master’s degree in the same course from the University of Southern California.
Engineering and Invention Career
Mark Rober was interested in engineering right from his childhood. As a child, he reportedly made a pair of goggles to help him avoid tearing while chopping onions.
After graduating from the university, Rober kicked off his engineering career in 2004 by joining NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). He worked at JPL for the next nine years. Seven of his nine-year stint at NASA were spent on the Curiosity rover project, which is presently on Mars.
YouTube and Social Media Career
Mark Rober made a number of viral videos while still working with NASA. His earlier videos covered a range of topics, mostly science & technology and do-it-yourself hacks.
Rober uploaded his first video on YouTube in October 2011. The video was of a Halloween costume utilizing two iPads which create a transparent illusion. It immediately went viral, garnering over 2.5 million views within 24 hours.
Rober leveraged the success of his Halloween costume video to launch his YouTube and social media career. In December 2018, he posted a video about using a glitter-spraying engineered contraption to trick parcel thieves. The video received a whopping 25 million views in just one day.
As at the time of writing (October 12, 2022), Mark Rober’s YouTube channel has 22.7 million subscribers. Rober enjoys a sizable following across several other social media platforms, including 2.8 million followers on TikTok and 833,000 followers on Instagram.
Other Ventures
Mark Rober has undertaken a number of other ventures, including writing and product design.
Rober contributed several articles to Men’s Health in 2015. He also made a TEDx presentation the same year, titled ‘How to Come Up with Good Ideas.’
As a product designer, Rober is best known for working in Apple Inc.’s Special Projects Group, where he’s credited for authoring patents involving virtual reality (VR) in self-driving cars.
Mark Rober’s Net Worth
Mark Rober has held numerous jobs during his professional career. Expectedly, he has made millions from his various endeavors. As at October 1, 2022, Rober had a net worth of $7 million.
Social media is arguably Mark Rober’s biggest current income earner. Rober mostly makes money from monetized posts on his various social media handles, particularly YouTube and Instagram.
Mark Rober’s wealth is also partly attributable to the professional duties he performed before venturing into social media. These include his stints as a NASA engineer and Apple Inc. product designer.
Endorsement deals have likely also contributed a share of Mark Rober’s net worth. Going by his sweeping popularity and influence on social media, it’s expected that many brands would desire a partnership deal with him.
It’s worth noting that Mark Rober has also enjoyed moderate success as an article writer. Obviously, these roles came with monetary benefits too.
Last but not least, Mark Rober’s earnings also come from entrepreneurial ventures outside his main professional interests.
Banking on the success of his 2011 Halloween YouTube video, Rober founded the online Halloween costume company – Digital Dudz – in 2012. The company offers app-integrated costumes similar to those seen in Rober’s Halloween YouTube video.
Digital Dudz turned out to be a fairly lucrative venture. The company raked in over $250,000 in revenue within its first three weeks of operation. By 2013, its products were available in several reputable stores, such as Party City. Digital Dudz costumes have also featured in numerous television shows, ranging from CNN to CBS News, Fox, Discovery Channel, The Today Show, to mention but a few.
In 2013, after raking in a considerable fortune from Digital Dudz, Rober sold the costume design company to UK-based spandex company, Morphsuits.
Lessons from Mark Rober
1. Leave your mark
Mark Rober has impacted monumental change in all his previous engagements. He’s truly a revolutionary figure in the engineering industry.
2. Attitude is everything
Rober believes that attitude plays a significant role in determining our ability to overcome life’s challenges. He once said, ‘If I see a problem, I like to think if there’s a better way to do it.’
3. Give back
Mark Rober has pursued numerous charity works over the years. A notable mention is his #TeamTrees collaborative project with renowned YouTubers, which aims to encourage tree planting.
Famous Quotes by Mark Rober
• But by reframing the learning process and focusing on the cool end goal, the fear of failure is often taken off the table, and learning just comes more naturally.
• I feel like a lot of successes in my life have come down to the Super Mario Effect, and while framing challenges like this has worked for me, of course, results may vary.
• I love to take something very commonplace and reuse it in an original way.
• Until maybe my coworker makes a six-and-a-half-foot Nerf gun, I’m the proud holder of a world record.
• We can all relate at some level to being fascinated by looking at ourselves. You see it every time little kids walk into a store with surveillance and start dancing and waving at themselves.
Final Word
Mark Rober is an engineer, inventor, product designer, social media celebrity, and author…all rolled into one.
It’s therefore not surprising that Rober is a dollar millionaire. The innovative designer currently has a net worth of $7 million.