Video: watch people lose their minds over a Tesla prank

Tesla’s autonomous ‘Autopilot’ mode is essentially 21st century witchcraft. It also appears to be quite a useful pranking tool.

With the £2,200 system installed, all you have to do is pull onto a motorway, toggle the cruise control stalk to your desired speed, then give the stalk another yank and the car takes over – steering and all.

It’s clever. Using the array of cameras and sensors that have been standard fit to the Model S since late 2014, the car will keep itself in lane. You sit back, using neither your hands or feet, until you need to leave the motorway. Giving you plenty of time to think about things. Things like pranks.

That’s exactly what one deviant YouTube prankster did when he decided to dress up as a car seat – giving him an invisibility cloak of sorts – then activating ‘Autopilot’ on an American highway.

As you’d imagine, the general public was quite perturbed at the fact that a two-tonne saloon was firing its way down a highway with no one behind the wheel. Cue some excellent responses from the unassuming prankees. Which you can see above.