He solves a Rubik's Cube in 6 seconds. Now he wants students to be better thinkers

A Rubik's Cube can have more than 43 quintillion possible configurations. For Medhansh Seth, an 18-year-old from Delhi-NCR, it became much more than a puzzle. It taught him patience, the value of practice and how to keep working on a problem until he found a solution.Today, Seth has a 6.11-second personal best in solving a 33 Rubik's Cube, four consecutive Delhi state championship titles and more than 150 podium finishes across 65-plus competitions. But his interests have moved well beyond competitive cubing.A Class 12 graduate from Step By Step School, Noida, he is currently pursuing a four-year course in Tech and Business Management at Masters' Union in Gurugram. He has founded an educational venture, taught over 600 children, written a book on entrepreneurship, and now he is questioning something many classrooms rarely discuss: are children getting enough opportunities to develop their ability to think?And it is his latest project, Youth Cognitive Mission (YCM), that brings together something he has learnt through years of cubing and teaching: children need opportunities to develop their ability to concentrate, think and solve problems, not just prepare for examinations. Medhansh with students HOW A RUBIK'S CUBE BECAME HIS CALLINGSeth's introduction to the cube came at eight, when his mother, Vani Seth, gave him one. Before that, he had tried cricket, football, tennis, swimming, chess, dance and art.Cricket was a particular favourite. He regularly represented his school team, but cubing gradually took over. “It was the first activity I became genuinely obsessed with improving at. I could spend hours practising without realising how much time had passed,” he says.During the COVID-19 lockdowns, he sometimes practised for eight hours a day, carrying a cube almost everywhere. His efforts led to four national records recognised by the India Book of Records. He also attempted unusual challenges, including solving a cube underwater in 15.5 seconds and completing a solve while on a zipline.His competitive journey has had its share of disappointments, too. At around 15, he missed a gold medal by just 0.01 seconds.“I was genuinely devastated,” he recalls.Over time, however, he learnt to stop measuring his progress only against other competitors. “I still care deeply about improving, but I've increasingly tried to focus on competing with my previous self rather than everyone else,” he says.“Winning matters, but enjoying what you do is what allows you to keep going,” he adds.His practice routine has since changed. He now spends around 30 minutes a day on cubing when he is home, with more time going into teaching and his ventures. Interestingly, he also learnt that practising slowly, without a timer, could improve his speed by developing what cubers call 'lookahead' — anticipating the next moves while completing the current ones.That lesson about patience would eventually find its way into his work with children. Medhansh teaching students to solve Rubik's cube FROM SOLVING PUZZLES TO TEACHING 600 CHILDRENIn June 2023, aged 15, Seth founded AceCubing, an educational venture that offers structured Rubik's Cube and mental sports programmes for children.It has since taught more than 600 students through online courses, school workshops and learning sessions, working with institutions including The British School, Learners International and Playtos Miniversity.But teaching children also made him look beyond the puzzle itself. What happens to a child's ability to concentrate when almost every free moment is filled with notifications, short videos and digital entertainment?That question led him to start Youth Cognitive Mission (YCM), a non-commercial initiative promoting cognitive fitness and healthier digital habits. It aims to bring students, parents, schools, educators and researchers into conversations about attention, memory, patience and independent thinking. One of its projects, YCM Labs, is being developed as a research-informed publication with contributions from academics, neuroscientists, educators and researchers.Seth is clear that the idea is not to discourage technology. He spends considerable time on screens himself while exploring artificial intelligence and technology. He has also experienced difficulty concentrating.“One of the simplest things that helped was putting my phone on Do Not Disturb and keeping it somewhere out of sight,” he says. “I don't believe screen time itself is necessarily the problem. I believe the bigger issue is losing control over our attention.”YCM hopes to encourage children to read, solve puzzles, play mental sports and engage in activities that require sustained attention.And there's one thing he definitely would introduce if he could walk into a school.A 15-minute free-thinking period.No phones, screens, notifications or pressure to perform. Children could sit quietly, journal, draw, read or solve a puzzle.“I believe boredom is severely underrated,” he says. For him, learning to sit with one's thoughts can make room for curiosity, creativity and independent thinking. Medhansh speaking at an event THE BUSINESS EXPOSURE THAT STARTED AT SEVENSeth's interest in entrepreneurship also has roots in his childhood. His father, Sameer Seth, founded Pentagonn India, a business supplying products to telecommunications service providers.He began taking his son to factories, trade fairs and business meetings when he was around seven. The exposure was practical: Seth learnt about warehousing, billing, GST and accounting software, and even helped unload trucks alongside workers.“My father made sure I saw the entire spectrum,” he says, adding that entrepreneurship was never forced upon him.That early exposure eventually translated into another project: his debut book, Surrogate Entrepreneur, published on October 17, 2026. Written over approximately 700 days, with 1,000 outreach emails and a 40,000-word manuscript, it examines startup culture, fundraising, bootstrapping and the realities of building a business. The book received praise from entrepreneurs and business leaders, including Dr Ritesh Malik, Kishore Biyani, Ankur Warikoo and politician Shashi Tharoor.However, managing a book, a venture, competitions and board examinations during Classes 11 and 12 was not always easy. There were times when he missed outings with friends because work took priority.He says that one of his favourite things to do on a day off now is to have no schedule at all. He watches shows, orders food, meets friends or simply spends time with his family.“Not every moment needs to be productive, and not every free hour needs to be filled with an activity,” he says. Beyond cubing, business and writing, Seth enjoys photography, philosophy and playing sports such as pickleball. Medhansh with Shashi Tharoor HIS NEXT AIM IS TO CONTRIBUTE TO INDIA'S ECONOMYHe also serves as Secretary General of the Delhi Union and has been selected as an AWS Student Builder Group Leader.His ambitions, now, extend beyond his current ventures. He wants to expand AceCubing and Youth Cognitive Mission, explore artificial intelligence and build businesses that create value at scale.“I want to build from India, for India,” he says.With 2047 marking 100 years of India's Independence, he hopes to contribute to the country's growth and encourage more young people to build something of their own.“I wasn't around when India gained independence in 1947, but I will be here when India marks 100 years of independence in 2047,” he says.He hopes to look back knowing he played even a small part in helping India achieve its place on the global stage.For someone who once spent eight hours trying to solve a puzzle faster, his next challenge is rather different. He wants children to learn that sometimes, the most important thing is not finding an answer quickly, but having the patience to think one through.- Ends