OMG that was effing amazing! How does he do that?

I saw him do that car second sight part on tv a couple years ago. I was blown away then but it is a car with lots of electronics so I figured maybe it had memory or something. But now I wonder! And the spike under the cup was amazing! I have to watch it again to see if I can figure how he does it.

Great performance! Does he tour in the U.S.? I would really like to see him live!

I think I know how he does the warmup with his clasped hands. You have to keep in mind that he is deceiving you and misdirecting your attention. When he momentarily unclasps his hands to point at someone in the audience (everybody looks) and reclasps them, he puts them together differently in a way that allows them to twist as he does.

I suspect he has some way of seeing or feeling which piece of wood has the spike (remember he was the last to rearrange them). But it still seems like a dangerous trick since some audience participants are wise guys like this one and might move them after he has them set. If that were the case, he would have a bloody accident. Very good trick and a great act!

Awesome show! Not what we usually see at TED but entertainment is its middle name.

I have loved magic acts since I was a little boy. I got my first magic set for Christmas when I was about 5 or 6. I did magic shows for my family and friends and anyone willing to be my audience. But I eventually put it away when education and needing to support a family became priorities. Even today I never pass a magic act that doesn't draw me in.

This was a solid act. I can guess how he does a couple tricks, but a couple I am not so sure. If he performs in Las Vegas, I will definitely be in the front row!

Reading his info on his web site, he apparently appeared in Las Vegas at Planet Hollywood and is negotiating for a resident show there. That will be worth a trip to LV for!

Awesome show, thanks for posting! Very nice site! Love the pictures!

Too long to watch at work but I will watch it this weekend.

Very impressive act. I watched it twice and think I know how he does some of these but not others. I won't be the spoiler but I think he relies on people wanting to be cooperative. There is no real magic as he freely admits so it is about the illusion. He is very good at misdirection.

Outstanding post! I have watched TED lectures in the past, but this was one of the lightest and most entertaining I have seen in quite some time. Definitely a very talented magician, one I will look forward to seeing more of should the opportunity present itself.

(No relation to the conference)

What a great magician! I can't believe he isn't already headlining in Vegas!

This is why I read your blog, you post some really good stuff I don't see elsewhere (except some of the jokes, but no matter!)

This guy is fabulous! If he hits Vegas, I hope I am able to get tickets!

After watching a few times I think I figured out how he does it. Very subtle but it is on screen. The camera angles hide it, but it is there. For example, when he is moving his hands all around the girl, his right hand drops behind her for a second while he distracts the audience with his left hand moving in front of her. That is when he touched her back. Then he moves his hands around the guy. Then he asks her if she felt anything. Her eyes were closed, so when he asks if she felt anything, she says yes. The audience thinks she is referring to a feeling after he moved around the guy but she is talking about the touches when he was moving about her. He distracts the audience very effectively.

He is a master!

Great magic act!!! Thanks!!!

Thanks Zack for killing the illusion! Why don't you tell us how "Batman: Dark Knight" ends?

(just kidding)

I will watch again this weekend and see if I catch it.

Sorry, some others above had offered how they thought he did his illusions so I thought it was fair game. Didn't mean to spoil it for you.

One thing I have always found most enjoyable about magic tricks is trying to figure out how the illusion is executed. Just watching without wondering isn't part of me.

As for Dark Knight, in the end, he (just kidding)

Super magic show. I love illusions and he is quite good at them.

Good show!