The biotech businessman went toe-to-toe with his fellow conservative candidates onstage at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee -- and emerged victorious with a 28 percent approval rating from voters in the Daily Mail poll.

Ron DeSantis slid into the second spot with 27 percent approval. Former Vice President Mike Pence came in third with 13 percent. The other candidates -- Tim Scott, Nikki Haley, Chris Christie, Doug Burgum, Asa Hutchinson -- all polled in the single digits.

Of course, Trump was nowhere to be found because he's, by far, the Republican frontrunner, electing instead to do an interview with Tucker Carlson that aired on X, formerly known as Twitter.

During the two-hour debate, Vivek was thrust into the spotlight during several heated exchanges with his rivals, especially Christie, who compared him to "ChatGPT" -- a form of Artificial Intelligence technology that allows you to have human-like conversations and more with a chatbot.

Vivek also stirred controversy when he was the only candidate to raise his hand after being asked if they would not support an increase in funding for the war in Ukraine.

At one point, the conversation turned to climate change and Vivek labeled it a hoax, prompting boos from the crowd.

He was also quick to put up his arm when asked about whether the candidates would support Trump if he were convicted in any of his four criminal cases.