Luminar Technologies Inc. saw a significant rise in its stock value following a test drive conducted by former NASA scientist Mark Rober. Rober tested a car equipped with Luminar's lidar technology in a YouTube video and claimed that it performed better than Tesla Inc.'s Autopilot feature.

The video, which has amassed over 11 million views since its release on March 15, showcased six tests comparing Luminar's lidar technology with Tesla's system, which relies solely on "simple cameras" and image processing for navigation.

Luminar's shares surged by 27% on Monday, marking their largest increase in over two months, while Tesla's shares dropped by 4.8%, underperforming the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes.

Luminar declined to offer a comment, and Tesla did not respond to Bloomberg News' request for a statement.

Mark Rober, a former NASA and Apple Inc. employee with a YouTube channel boasting over 65 million subscribers, clarified in the video that although Luminar provided the test vehicle, he was not financially compensated by the company, and the video was not a paid promotion. Luminar's X and LinkedIn accounts both shared links to Rober's video on March 15.

Lidar, an abbreviation for light detection and ranging, is a sensor technology that emits laser pulses, measures their return time after hitting an object, and utilizes this data to determine object distances and create three-dimensional maps of surroundings.

Despite the recent stock momentum, Luminar's shares remain about 80% below the peak reached in July. The company is set to release its fourth-quarter results after the market closes on March 20.

This text includes additional context, updated stock movements, and a chart for reference, with contributions from Kara Carlson.