this post was submitted on 16 Mar 2025
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Mark Rober just set up one of the most interesting self-driving tests of 2025, and he did it by imitating Looney Tunes. The former NASA engineer and current YouTube mad scientist recreated the classic gag where Wile E. Coyote paints a tunnel onto a wall to fool the Road Runner.

Only this time, the test subject wasn’t a cartoon bird… it was a self-driving Tesla Model Y.

The result? A full-speed, 40 MPH impact straight into the wall. Watch the video and tell us what you think!

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 day ago (4 children)

Very surprised Mark isn't... Super supportive of musk and Tesla.

He owns a Tesla and is rather wealthy at this point. Not to mention that he's Mormon. I'd expect him to be very conservative and all in on the grift.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

Mark is a smart guy, I'm sure he walks great big circles around anything political, at least publicly.

His audience is everybody, aligning publicly with any kind of political flow is generally a bad idea if you want that to stay that way, because the only thing you'll likely achieve is shrinking your potential audience.

I would also be careful with the assumption that all conservatives agree with what's currently happening.

[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 day ago (3 children)

(Edit: Ope, I think I misunderstood you, my bad. Disregard my reply.)

What a world we're living in!

Observing a technical deficiency in a robotics platform requires political considerations. Even when a car drives into a fucking wall at 40MPH on camera, people are asking about the camera man's political party affiliation and not what's wrong with the car.

Wild!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 hours ago

out the camera man’s political party affiliation and not what’s wrong with the car.

We know what's wrong with the car. He was very clear about it. We mostly should have known it was coming.

I actually think the Tesla could be trained to stop for this, they certainly never trained it to detect this. As you get closer the perspective changes. it's slight, but probably fine for algo detection.

As far as political considerations, the REAL wild part is the actions of the current administration at less than 100 days in. It's difficult not to see things through the lense when the guy at the top is trying to dismantle the pardons of the previous president of people who weren't charged with crimes, while he pardoned the silk road guy.

Literally, every news-worthy action is peppered with politics now due to the incomprehensible actions at the top.

While Rober is officially non-committal to a political agenda:

He clearly and repeatedly supports education (this should not be a telling political statement)

He has created videos highlighting the importance of mental health and creativity, encouraging viewers to embrace their unique talents. (this should not be a telling political statement)

His projects often promote inclusivity and accessibility, making science and technology more approachable for diverse audiences. (this should not be a telling political statement)

NONE of these should be a telling political statement. Education should be paramount. Diversity should not be a political statement.

The current administration doing WHITE POWER SALUTES ON STAGE, shutting down education and REMOVING BLACK SERVICEMEN from the public internet are EXACTLY the kinds of things required to make all THIS a political statement.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 12 hours ago

Porque no los dos? I hate porch pirates and would love to sprinkle some in glitter. However, some porch pirates I'll assume are just poor kids. But I am intrigued by people wanting to go into a mortgage for a chance to end up pasted on a wall.

I would also be afraid of dying funny. You know what I mean? Like in old cars you would eat the steering wheel or get your guts removed by the center post of the steering wheel and right thru your spine. Not very funny. But on the Tesla steering wheel you could end up smashing your face right on the screen. Or if you're a woman, the implants could get sucked right into the two holes of the steering wheel. That would be awkward on a full body viewing.... Well it's a new bra style she was trying.... And then you get smacked in the face with a software glitch airbag. Wouldn't that be nice? Well at Least the steering wheel pit remover problem is solved. Give it a few hundred years and maybe someone will come up with an automated car that doesn't drive into walls.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Unfortunately when the vehicle in question is created by a company owned by a man operating a government agency, it's a valid question. He could have just never made the video, but making one that directly opposes the narrative of people you'd expect the "camera man's" political affiliation to be seems unusual.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 hours ago

Can't deny any of that.

Have I mentioned, I'm broadly surprised by how reasonable the conversations are here versus Reddit? Thanks for that, I think I misunderstood your initial comment

[–] [email protected] 10 points 22 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago)

Rober is definitely a businessman out to make money and is very self-promoting and will accept just about anybody as a sponsor, but I can't think of anything he's done that's been out-and-out deceitful or political. And he really does have some engineering chops.

I think he's a good voice for this because he's been so intentionally apolotical, and even my right-wing family likes his stuff.

Though my YouTube crazy engineer of choice is Stuff Made Here. He spends months between videos, but the stuff he makes is awesome, and he shows off a lot more of the actual creative process. And his fabrication tool collection is insane for a home shop.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 day ago

I’d expect him to be very conservative

We still don't know for sure. That video will likely become one of, if not his top-grossing videos. The topic and timeliness are absolute fire.

I give him some credit, though. It's a dicey time to throw Musk under the self-driving bus while showing that alternatives don't have the same problem.