A Tesla driver in California is going viral this week after a fellow motorist recorded him completely knocked out behind the wheel while his car cruised down the highway at highway speed.
The passenger in the next lane pulled out a phone and captured nearly a full minute of footage showing the man's head slumped, eyes closed, hands nowhere near the steering wheel.
The clip spread across social media within hours, racking up millions of views and reigniting one of the fiercest debates in American tech: just how "self-driving" is a Tesla, really?
The answer, according to the company's own manuals, is not nearly as self-driving as the guy in that video apparently believed.
Tesla's Autopilot and its pricier "Full Self-Driving" upgrade are classified as Level 2 driver-assistance systems.
That means the car can steer, accelerate, and brake on its own in many situations, but a licensed human is legally required to stay alert and ready to take over at any moment.
Every Tesla sold today nags drivers with steering-wheel torque sensors and cabin cameras designed to catch exactly this kind of behavior.
Here's the uncomfortable part for Tesla fans: this isn't a one-off.
Safety researchers have documented dozens of similar incidents, and federal regulators have spent years investigating whether the company's marketing oversells what these cars can actually do.
When a feature is literally named "Full Self-Driving," it's not shocking that some owners treat it like a robot chauffeur and tune out completely.
The stakes go far beyond one embarrassing video.
Hands-free driving is a feature American car buyers increasingly want, and Tesla is far from alone — Ford, GM, and Mercedes all sell similar systems with varying limits.
But Tesla's approach leans harder on camera-based monitoring and flashier branding, which critics say invites misuse.
If you own one, the message from every safety agency is blunt: the car is helping, not driving.
So is a Tesla worth buying for its autonomy features?
If you want a genuinely hands-off, eyes-off experience, no consumer car on the road today delivers it legally or safely.
If you want a strong electric vehicle with an impressive assist system that can reduce highway fatigue, it's still one of the most capable options out there — as long as you keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes open.
Our take: viral clips like this one do real damage to the entire autonomous driving movement, because they make the technology look reckless when the real problem is human overconfidence.
Tesla can build a better car, but it can't fix a driver who decides to take a nap at 75 miles per hour.
Final Thoughts
Until regulators and automakers agree on tougher safeguards, expect more videos like this one — and more hard questions for everyone selling the dream of self-driving.