{{Short description|Canadian YouTuber (born 1990)}} {{infobox youtube channel | name = Hacksmith Industries (The Hacksmith) | image = | birth_name = James Hobson | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1990|02|10}} | birth_place = Kitchener, Ontario, Canada <ref>{{Cite web |title=Kitchener's Hacksmith Industries creates the pinnacle of sci-fi tech |url=https://kitchener.citynews.ca/following-up/kitcheners-hacksmith-industries-creates-the-pinnacle-of-sci-fi-tech-2802054 |access-date=2022-05-24 |website=CityNews Kitchener |date=21 October 2020 |language=en}}</ref> | website = {{url|www.hacksmith.com}} | occupation = {{Hlist|Engineer|YouTuber|Entrepreneur}} | youtube_handle = hacksmith | youtube_display_name = Hacksmith Industries
| youtube_years_active = 2006–present | youtube_genre = | youtube_subscribers = 15.4 million<!-- PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE WITHOUT UPDATING stats_update BELOW --> | youtube_views = 3.05 billion<!-- PLEASE DO NOT CHANGE WITHOUT UPDATING stats_update BELOW --> | stats_update = 25 February 2026 }} '''James Hobson''' (born February 10, 1990), known for his YouTube channel '''Hacksmith Industries''' (formerly '''The Hacksmith'''), is a Canadian engineer, Entrepreneur and YouTuber.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-01-14|title=Internet Famous: How James Hobson (a.k.a. The Hacksmith) brings in six figures a year building superhero props on YouTube|url=https://torontolife.com/city/life/internet-famous-how-james-hobson-a-k-a-the-hacksmith-brings-in-500000-a-year-building-superhero-props-on-youtube/|access-date=2020-11-12|website=Toronto Life|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|last=Ellis|first=Philip|date=2020-10-10|title=This Engineer Built a Real 'Star Wars' Lightsaber That Burns at 4,000 Degrees|url=https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a34335375/star-wars-lightsaber-real-hacksmith-how-to-build/|access-date=2020-11-12|website=Men's Health|language=en-US}}</ref>
Hobson is the presenter and prominent figure on the channel and has done a TEDx talk on his aspirations as an engineer.<ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=2016-09-02|title=James Hobson|url=https://www.tedxkc.org/james-hobson|access-date=2020-11-12|website=TEDxKC|language=en-US}}</ref> In December 2020, Hobson was awarded a Guinness World Record for his 'lightsaber'.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Hicks|first=Jesse|date=2020-12-04|title=This Man Earned an Actual Guinness World Record for Building a Working Lightsaber|url=https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a34876278/star-wars-real-lightsaber-guinness-world-record-james-hobson-hacksmith/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205201041/https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a34876278/star-wars-real-lightsaber-guinness-world-record-james-hobson-hacksmith/|archive-date=2020-12-05|access-date=2020-12-05|website=Men's Health|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Guinness|first=World Records|author-link=Guinness World Records|date=2020-12-03|title=World's First Lightsaber! - Guinness World Records|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AymYhmayWz4|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205201154/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AymYhmayWz4|archive-date=2020-12-05|access-date=2020-12-05|website=YouTube}}</ref> In July 2021, he was awarded another world record for the world's brightest flashlight.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web|date=2021-07-21|title=Canadian inventor Hacksmith creates the world's brightest flashlight|url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2021/7/canadian-inventor-hacksmith-creates-the-worlds-brightest-flashlight-668374|access-date=2021-11-12|website=Guinness World Records|language=en-gb}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite web|last=Goodyear|first=Sheena|date=27 July 2021|title=Canadian YouTubers build the world's brightest flashlight|url=https://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-the-tuesday-edition-1.6119262/canadian-youtubers-build-the-world-s-brightest-flashlight-1.6119263|access-date=11 November 2021|website=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation}}</ref>
== Hacksmith Industries == Hacksmith Industries is known for its "Make It Real" series, where Hobson and his team take fictional items and create real-life replicas, such as an exosuit or lightsaber.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Sparks|first=Hannah|date=2020-10-13|title=YouTuber creates real-life 'Star Wars' lightsaber that slices steel|url=https://nypost.com/2020/10/13/youtuber-creates-real-life-star-wars-lightsaber-that-slices-steel/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112065018/https://nypost.com/2020/10/13/youtuber-creates-real-life-star-wars-lightsaber-that-slices-steel/|archive-date=2020-11-12|access-date=2020-11-12|website=New York Post|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last1=Bueckert|first1=Kate|last2=Anglelis|first2=Robin De|date=April 25, 2019|title=A Kitchener company is recreating all the cool superhero things {{!}} CBC News|language=en-US|work=CBC|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/the-hacksmith-youtube-kitchener-avengers-end-game-1.5107790|url-status=live|access-date=2020-11-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112065148/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/the-hacksmith-youtube-kitchener-avengers-end-game-1.5107790|archive-date=2020-11-12}}</ref> Its gas-fueled steampunk-style plasma lightsaber that could reach {{convert|4000|F|C}} and cut through metal was awarded a Guinness World Record for the world's first retractable protosaber.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hale|first=Jacob|date=2020-10-16|title=Hacksmith creates real Star Wars lightsaber that cuts through anything|url=https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/hacksmith-creates-real-star-wars-lightsaber-that-cuts-through-anything-1433888/|access-date=2020-11-12|website=Dexerto}}</ref><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> The channel also collaborated on projects with companies like Smarter Alloys in 2021.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Smarter Alloys Showcases the Healing Properties of Shape Memory Alloys in a Collaboration with The Hacksmith for Their Latest Viral Video|url=https://financialpost.com/globe-newswire/smarter-alloys-showcases-the-healing-properties-of-shape-memory-alloys-in-a-collaboration-with-the-hacksmith-for-their-latest-viral-video|access-date=2021-11-12|newspaper=Financial Post|date=6 October 2021 |language=en-CA}}</ref> However, the channel's projects are not specifically limited to existing media, such as when it created the previously mentioned flashlight.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4" />
In 2019, Hacksmith Industries created a replica of a half-scale Tesla Cybertruck that had the same specifications as the full scale.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Tangermann|first=Victor|title=Watch a half-scale Cybertruck beat a Ford F-150 in a tug of war|url=https://futurism.com/half-scale-cybertruck-beat-f-150-tug-war|access-date=2021-11-12|website=Futurism|date=27 February 2020 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Traugott|first=Jay|date=2019-12-19|title=People Aren't Waiting For Tesla To Build The Cybertruck|url=https://carbuzz.com/news/people-arent-waiting-for-tesla-to-build-the-cybertruck|access-date=2021-11-12|website=CarBuzz|language=en-us}}</ref> Around the same year, it moved to a different facility with more equipment for its projects.
From 2020 through 2021, the channel made its first complete set of armor, which was based on Din Djarin's arsenal from the Disney+ streaming series ''The Mandalorian''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Darling|first=Mike|date=2021-03-25|title=An Engineer Made a Full Metal Replica of the 'Mandalorian' Helmet in His Garage|url=https://www.menshealth.com/entertainment/a35940885/mandalorian-star-wars-helmet-hacksmith-build/|access-date=2021-11-12|website=Men's Health|language=en-US}}</ref>
In late 2022, the channel moved to another facility with more open space for testing its projects. The crew later constructed a new series of clean rooms to safely work with liquid oxygen to work on a self-contained version of their lightsaber.
==YouTube career== {| class="wikitable" |+ Main channels' statistics (May 14, 2023) ! rowspan="3" | Channel ! rowspan="3" | Subscribers,<br>millions ! rowspan="3" | Views,<br>billions ! colspan="3" | YouTube Creator Awards |- ! 25px|link=YouTube Creator Awards ! 25px|link=YouTube Creator Awards ! 25px|link=YouTube Creator Awards |- ! 0.1 ! 1 ! 10 |- | Hacksmith Industries | 13.6 | 1.66 | | | 2020 |- | Hacksmith VLOGS | 0.4 | 0.024 | | | |- | Best Hacksmith Clips | 0.048 | 0.00019 | | | |}
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == * {{IMDb name|8966476|James Hobson}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hobson, James}} Category:1990 births Category:Living people Category:Canadian gaming YouTubers Category:People from Kitchener, Ontario Category:YouTube channels launched in 2006 Category:YouTubers from Ontario