'AGT' Season 19: Simon Cowell demanded help after seeing 2-year-old Baby Dev's skills
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA: An early-release audition from the first episode of 'America's Got Talent' Season 19 has been released by the program ahead of its May 28 airing. It highlights 2-year-old Devan Defreitas, known as Baby Dev, a math prodigy who dazzled the judges with his abilities, even making Simon Cowell demand a calculator amidst it all.
Baby Dev's father, Duane Defreitas, went with him to his 'AGT' Season 19 audition. Dev multiplied or added the figures that his father had requested from the judges on a dry-erase board.
In the first equation, which was somewhat straightforward, he multiplied 7 by 9 to obtain 63. Subsequently, Dev began using two-digit numerals, combining 44 and 13 to obtain 57.
Even when writing it, he took care to cross his seven, and he also went back and crossed the one his father had put on the prior equation. In order to solve the last problem, multiply 79 by 7.
Watching Dev work through the process of solving it was an opportunity for the viewers. Judge Howie Mandel said something at one point, and Dev looked away.
Howie regretted interjecting. Eventually, he discovered that the result was 553, which was the right response.
Baby Dev gets 4 yeses from 'AGT' judges
Terry Crews, the host, stated, "I can't do that, and I'm 55 years old." The audience applauded Dev after the performance.
"Honestly, we were all sitting here thinking the same thing, which is, 'Get us a calculator,'" Simon quipped after witnessing Dev answer the problems. Heidi Klum chipped in, telling Dev he's "so amazing."
Sofía Vergara called it "one of the most fascinating things I have watched on 'AGT.'" Dev was sent to the next round by the unanimous decision of the four judges.
'AGT' producers reached out to Baby Dev over his viral TikTok videos
Baby Dev cheerfully solves mathematical equations on dry-erase boards, sounding out each number as he goes, in TikTok videos that have received up to 36 million views each. In one video, he may be shown correctly recognizing Roman numbers.
In another, he has to solve word puzzles. This preschooler could certainly compete on 'Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?' in terms of numbers.
Dad Duane says he is still absorbing all the attention his family has received since the original video was posted in September, including a remote visit on 'CBS Mornings' with Gayle King and NBC's 'The Kelly Clarkson Show'.
"Sometimes I'm just kind of like, oh, it's nothing,'" Duane told Newsday. "But then it's like, wow, is this really happening?'"
Duane had never had a TikTok account, but he'd heard about it from pals or something.
"That's the thing these young kids are into nowadays. So I said, hey, why not make one for Devan and see what happens? The videos became viral, and not too long after that, the producers from AGT reached out to us," he said.
"And he liked being on 'AGT', according to his father. He had never been on a stage, so I was a little worried how he would react. But he loved the crowd. He loves being cheered on. He loves when we clap for them. So he soaked everything up and loved it," he added.
'AGT' Season 19 contestant Baby Dev had a slight speech delay
Duane, who lives in Mount Sinai, who also has an 8-year-old boy and a 10-year-old daughter, requested that Devan's mother remain anonymous. However, he claims that she was present on the day they initially saw Devan's aptitude for arithmetic.
"He had a slight speech delay, so he didn't say Mama, Dada," Duane explained. "And one day he was watching one of his number videos, and they were singing the number-seven song, and he just blurred out, Seven! Seven! as his opening line."
He repeated it, saying, "And his mother and I just looked at eac other with our eyes open, and we actually caught that on video, too."
'America's Got Talent' Season 19 starts on May 28, at 8/7c on NBC. You can see Baby Dev's audition and much more. The program will also be available on Peacock.