A proud US father aiming to educate others about autism has shown off the amazing talents of his son's autistic friend in a viral YouTube clip which has now garnered over 14 million views.
Youtuber Mark Rober has over 18 million subscribers, but called his recent video, which is now trending at number two in the world, the "most personal video I will ever make".
In 'The Truth About my Son', Rober introduced his son to the world, explaining he had shied away from doing so during his eight years of content creation.
"Actually finished it two years ago but it's taken us this long to feel comfortable releasing it till now," Rober tweeted ahead of the video's release. "Has to do with my son that I've protected from the internet for a long time. Please be kind."
In the clip, the autism awareness advocate reveals some insight into his family life and says that when he tells people his son has autism, they often want to know if he has any 'special talents'.
He pointed to his son's friend, who does have a certain "superpower".
Rober names a random date from history, as far back as June 2, 2004, and the boy is able to say exactly which day the date falls - in this case, a Wednesday.
And it's no one-off. Again selecting a random date using an online generator, Rober's son's friend immediately can name that May 26 2006 was a Friday.
"The truth is the majority of kids on the autistic spectrum don't have abilities like this," Rober explains in the clip.
Rober pointed to autism advocate Carly Fleischmann as an example of how people with autism appear to be mentally impaired but actually can have an incredible gauge on what's happening around them.
Throughout the video, Rober gives some insight into his son's life and reveals he does have his own special talent: creating murals for friends based around their favourite colours and interests.
Commenters were quick to praise Rober's parenting and reveal just how much the video meant to them.
"It's enough to make a grown man cry... and that's ok," one person wrote.
"That kid seems so happy so alive it makes me happy just to think about him," wrote another.
"As an autistic adult with debilitating hyperacusis, I appreciate this," another person commented.
Next week, Rober will host an online fundraiser with TV talk show host Jimmy Kimmel to benefit those with autism.
The three-hour event, 'Color The Spectrum: A Livestream To Support The Autism Community,' will be held on April 30 on his YouTube channel.
However donations are already pouring in, with over US$800,000 of the fundraisers $1 million target already raised.
Maya Rudolph, Adam Sandler, Chris Rock and Mark Hamill are among the celebrities set to take part.
