Mark Rober, former NASA engineer and youtubeur influence the most than 65 million subscribers, published a video last weekend staging a collision test involving a Tesla Model Y in Autopilot mode. This test compared the performance of the assisted driving system of Tesla, based solely on cameras, to a vehicle equipped with LIDAR technology, often presented as a more reliable alternative.

In the experience, the Tesla Model Y, rolling under autopilot, struck a wall painted so as to illusion and look like a road. The vehicle equipped with Lidar detected the obstacle and avoided it. This video, which counted 10 million views in just two days, immediately raised a wave of criticism and accusations of manipulation. Some observers, notably Tesla defenders, have noted anomalies and multiple sockets, suggesting oriented staging.

The title of the video itself has raised questions: “Can You Fool A Self-Driving because” because the Autopilot system is officially qualified as ADAS (an advanced driving assistance system). It can manage certain driving tasks, such as keeping a lane, cruise control or even change of track, but is not an autonomous system although the promotional videos of the company have been able to contribute to this confusion. Despite its misleading name, it permanently requires, as is the functionality “Full Self-Driving” (FSD), the supervision of an attentive driver ready to regain control of the vehicle at any time, which also allowed the company to win several trials following accidents.

The controversy has intensified when Internet users stressed that the video seemed to favor Lidar technology, which Tesla rejects in favor of a system exclusively based on cameras and computer vision algorithms. Some even said that this video could have been influenced, even sponsored, by Luminar, a key player in the Lidar market. This company, which provided the test vehicle, is frequently mentioned by Mark Rober during the video. She would have highlighted this video on her site before deleting it in the face of controversies.

The use of an old Autopilot system in the face of a recent Lidar solution has also been raised. Faced with these accusations, Mark Rober denied all manipulation and published raw sequences to prove his impartiality, which did not convince, far from it, his detractors.

Anyway, this video and the reactions it has aroused emphasizes the importance of carrying out transparent and impartial tests in order to objectively assess the reliability of these driving assistance technologies.