There has never been a single Marvel fan who has never uttered some form of the line: “I wish I was (Insert favorite Marvel superhero here)!”. However, most of these fans have never had the means, or let’s be honest the willpower, to create such weaponry and powers. That all changed with the introduction of the Hacksmith. The Hacksmith, otherwise known as James Hobson, is a Canadian engineer who runs Hacksmith Industries. Hacksmith Industries is a direct nod to Tony Stark’s Stark Industries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with the only difference being the limits of the real world and a some-odd billion dollars. However, Hobson and his team are the closest the world has ever seen to a real-life Iron Man, making a fully functional helmet, two working repulsors, a real arc reactor (which just powers things really fast, but does not have unlimited sustainable energy like the movies, as this is impossible) and an AI system named JARVIS running the facilities, whilst their personal robot assistant Dum-E delivers and spills coffee everywhere. Hacksmith Industries has shown some of the most insane builds that go far beyond this post, and even far beyond the Marvel universe. During quarantine, I watched and studied a lot of the Hacksmith YouTube channel (which will be linked below with a strong recommendation to check it out) and realized how much the channel had made me understand Marvel, and unleash the geek that loves superheroes. This post will only encompass a few of his builds, of course, all Marvel-related, but it is again highly recommended that you check them out and show them some support.
Let’s stick with the comparison to Iron Man, shall we? This section will encompass the builds described before, but with a tad more detail. To start, Dum-E, because as you probably know, Dum-E was the first technological advancement by Tony Stark, and thus has an important role in Hacksmith Industries. Dum-E is a remote-controlled robot that can grab a coffee and deliver it to the Hacksmith crew, although he often spills it out along the way. Next, we have JARVIS, whose video can be found here, and JARVIS is an AI who controls the entire workshop, from lights to WiFi, to door mechanisms, etc. JARVIS does it all at Hacksmith Industries, and he continues to be improved over time. Next up we have the Iron Man helmet and repulsors. The gauntlet repulsors have the ability to cut through steel and provide protection and functionality to the user. The helmet has a heads up display and night vision within it, and the face retracts and implants just like the real ones in the movies. If you are as intrigued as I was when I heard of this, you can find the repulsors here and the helmet video here. And finally, last and certainly least, the arc reactor. The arc reactor is simply a glorified and bulky portable charger, and although it is not the Hacksmith’s fault, it is not a video I enjoyed all that much. However, if you want to see that video, I left it right here. Hacksmith Industries may not be Stark Industries just yet, but hopefully, James will be able to mount a full-blown Iron Man suit soon. 
Some of the best videos James and his team do, aren’t even the builds, especially if you’re not one to care about the technicality and functionality. Often the most exciting videos are the testing or Make It Break videos, where James tests the functionality and durability of his creations. My favorite is the Make It Break episode where James tests his Captain America Shield against a jet engine (which is attached to an Iron Man suit). They mimicked the battle from Civil War and the scene was ultimately amazing to watch. The shield held up, but James was still thrown back. Dents in the shield marked a victory, while the metal began to steam. I recommend watching this seven-minute video here or just skipping ahead to see the climax of the confrontation. Hacksmith Industries has tested multiple forms of Thor’s hammer’s, Iron Man’s blasters, Thano’s sword, real lightsabers, and full exoskeleton suits. The work is done at Hacksmith is impressive and the revolutionary innovations made at their engineering dreamhouse may just change the world of real-life superheroes forever. 
Now, this is my favorite video, and for obvious reason. James brings along a fellow engineering friend named JT and they build a real-life system that allows them to grapple and travel along their roof like Spider-Man. Now, this is cruel but funny, JT falls in a hilarious way within the video, and as he is ok following the fall, I can say how funny it was, and get on to marveling at the work done at Hacksmith Industries. James and JT built grapplers that retract and shoot out via a shackle hook on the wrist mount and electric boards controlling the release and contraction of the hook. The rig ends up becoming very large, looking like an exoskeleton, but it will have to do due to the lack of radioactive spiders at Hacksmith Industries. The video is rather short, and the project had to be finished without JT as he had to go back to South Africa following his internship, but the final test was ultimately really cool, and the building of it was amazing to me.
The Hacksmith has been one of my favorite YouTubers over the past year and his videos continue to intrigue me. As I mentioned before, I strongly recommend the Hacksmith Youtube channel, which you can find by clicking the picture below. He has made dozens of other projects, many of MArvel ones such as Doctor Strange, Silver Surfer, Ghost Rider, and Star-Lord, while also building other cool inventions based off of the Fallout video game series, Batman, the Predator, a fully functional lightsaber, and even a cybertruck made completely from scratch. If you have the free time, and especially if you have the curiosity, check out the channel and support him. The Hacksmith comes out with videos every week or a few weeks, and every person working at Hacksmith never fails to disappoint my geeky side. With over 10 million subscribers and growing, the Hacksmith is growing and he may just be the world’s very first superheroes. 
“I did it first on the internet, which means I did it first” -James Hobson aka ‘The Hacksmith’
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