What happened
Malay Mail reported on 20 January 2020 that a three-year-old Malaysian boy living in Britain with an IQ of 142 had become one of the youngest people to join Mensa. NPR covered the story on 22 January under a headline calling him the youngest person to join Mensa UK, and ABC News told it through his mother's reaction.
The score came from the Stanford-Binet test, one of the standard supervised instruments, and placed him in the top 0.3 per cent of the population. Mensa's own threshold is the 98th percentile.
What the family described
His parents, Nur Anira Asyikin Hashim and Mohd Hilmy Naim Mohd Yakin, both have engineering backgrounds. His mother told Malay Mail that they had no yardstick for comparison: "We didn't have much experience, so we just thought that's how kids were. It was only when he started going to nursery, we were told he is more advanced than other children."
The milestones reported were early. First words at seven months. Reading bedtime stories to himself by two. A preference for conversation with older children and adults, and a particular interest in space and numbers. Alongside that, the same report recorded him painting and jumping in puddles, which is the detail that keeps the story in proportion.
Testing a three-year-old
Assessing a child of that age is difficult in ways that a headline number conceals. Standardised tests depend on attention, language and willingness to cooperate, all of which are volatile in a toddler, and results at three are not stable predictors of results at thirteen.
That is not a reason to doubt the reported figure. It is a reason to read it as what it is: a supervised assessment on one day, conducted by professionals, reported accurately by the press, and unlikely to mean what a lay reader assumes an IQ score means.
Why the story went global
A toddler in Mensa is an irresistible item for a newsroom, which is why a story from a British-Malaysian household reached NPR in Washington and ABC News within forty-eight hours of the Malaysian coverage.
The research record notes that the family lived in the Wakefield area, though the articles read here describe them only as UK-based. It also records the child's age at testing as 28 months in some accounts, against the age of three at admission reported elsewhere, a discrepancy this page flags rather than resolves.
What is documented, and what is not
Firmly established: the Mensa membership at three in January 2020, the Stanford-Binet score of 142, the top 0.3 per cent placement, his parents' names and engineering backgrounds, and the developmental account his mother gave.
Not established: his date of birth, his exact home town, his school, and anything about him since January 2020. He was a toddler when this was published, and this page deliberately carries nothing beyond what his family chose to make public.
| 人物 | 国家 | 里程碑 | 年龄 / 数据 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haryz Nadzim | 英国 | 三岁加入Mensa | 3岁 |
| Lawson Lundberg | 美国 | 3岁加入Mensa | 3岁 |
| Nishi Uggalle | 英国 | 2019年获得第四频道Child Genius称号 | 10岁 |
| David Camacho | 墨西哥 | 2024年入选NASA少年计划 | — |
| Sharvin Jeyendran | 澳大利亚 | Mensa测试将其定为168分，标题报道他超过了Stephen Hawking | — |
What is documented — and what is not
✓ Documented
- He joined Mensa at three in January 2020
- He scored 142 on the Stanford-Binet test, in the top 0.3 per cent of the population (Malay Mail)
- His parents are Nur Anira Asyikin Hashim and Mohd Hilmy Naim Mohd Yakin, both with engineering backgrounds
- His family said he spoke his first words at seven months
? Unverified, disputed or wrong
- No source read states his date of birth or exact home town
- Accounts differ on whether he was 28 months or three at testing
- NPR calls him the youngest Mensa UK member while Malay Mail says one of the youngest
- No coverage after January 2020 was found in this record
Questions people ask about Haryz Nadzim
What is Haryz Nadzim's IQ?
He scored 142 on the Stanford-Binet test, placing him in the top 0.3 per cent of the population, as reported in January 2020.
How old was he when he joined Mensa?
Three. Some accounts give his age at testing as 28 months; the discrepancy is noted rather than resolved here.
Where does he live?
The reports describe the family as UK-based. The research record places them in the Wakefield area, which the articles read here do not confirm.
When did he start talking?
His family said he spoke his first words at seven months and was reading bedtime stories to himself by two.
Who are his parents?
Nur Anira Asyikin Hashim and Mohd Hilmy Naim Mohd Yakin, who both have engineering backgrounds.
Is he really the youngest Mensa member?
NPR described him as the youngest to join Mensa UK; Malay Mail said one of the youngest. The society's records are not reproduced in the sources read here.
Is Haryz Nadzim on Wikipedia?
The research record found no standalone Wikipedia article about him.
Quick quiz: how well do you know Haryz’s story?
Which test produced Haryz Nadzim's score of 142?
At what age did his family say he spoke his first words?
What percentile did the score place him in?
Sources
- 3-Year-Old Boy Becomes Youngest Person To Join Mensa UK — NPR, 2020-01-22
- 3-year-old is youngest member of Mensa IQ society -- and his mom says even she's impressed — ABC News (GMA), 2020-01
- Three-year-old Malaysian boy with IQ of 142 becomes one of youngest to join Mensa — Malay Mail, 2020-01-20
Checked by the Geniuses.club editorial team. Ages are given as of September 2026.
