Luminar Shares Soar After Viral Test-Drive Video Featuring Lidar Technology

Luminar Technologies Inc. shares surged on Monday after former NASA scientist Mark Rober test-drove a car equipped with the company’s lidar technology in a YouTube video and said it outperformed Tesla Inc.’s Autopilot feature.

In the video, which has drawn more than 11 million viewers since it was published to YouTube on March 15, Rober runs six tests assessing the lidar technology against Tesla’s system, which he said navigates using only “simple cameras” and image processing.