When short video clips purporting to show a pair of “levitating Tesla sneakers” began circulating on social media earlier this month, they rapidly became some of the most widely shared technology-related content of the year. The footwear — described online as Tesla Glide — appeared to lift a wearer several centimetres off the ground in a smooth, stabilised motion, mimicking the look of a controlled product trial. The footage was polished, cinematic and deliberately styled to resemble an authentic Tesla demonstration, reports The WP Times, citing independent analysts and verification sources.

A Viral Phenomenon With No Identifiable Source

The clips originated from the Instagram account of Ajin Joseph, an Indian digital creator known for using artificial intelligence and 3-D rendering software to craft speculative product designs. Joseph posted two videos — one on 6 November and another on 10 November — featuring futuristic footwear hovering above a reflective surface.

In at least one of his earlier uploads, Joseph explicitly stated that the visuals represent AI-generated concepts and not real products. But as frequently happens on social platforms, the videos were rapidly detached from their original context. They were downloaded, reposted, edited and shared by accounts that omitted the disclaimers. Within a matter of hours, the narrative shifted from “concept art” to “leaked prototype footage”, and later to “Tesla’s secret next product”.

What the Footage Appeared to Depict

The videos portrayed a highly stylised version of wearable mobility technology:

  • shoes rising 5–10 cm above the floor,
  • smooth horizontal movement resembling low-speed magnetic levitation,
  • symmetrical lighting effects beneath the sole,
  • textures and finish consistent with Tesla’s design language.

The clips were short but visually coherent, allowing many viewers — particularly those encountering them in fast-moving mobile feeds — to assume authenticity.

Technical Analysis: Evidence of Synthetic Origin

Specialists in AI forensics and synthetic media examined the footage at frame level. The analysis identified multiple signs that the videos were computer-generated:

  • AI detection tools, including Hive AI, classified the footage as 99.9% likely to be synthetic.
  • Shadows beneath the shoes exhibited uniformity inconsistent with natural light behaviour.
  • Surface textures on the footwear repeated in patterns indicative of 3-D modelling.
  • Several frames displayed micro-distortions typical of diffusion-based video synthesis.
  • Motion paths lacked the micro-variability characteristic of real filmed movement.

Taken together, these indicators form a pattern consistent with the current generation of AI-driven animation tools.

Tesla’s Documented Silence — and What It Means

A comprehensive review of Tesla’s public materials provides no support for the idea that the company is involved in a project resembling Tesla Glide.

Searches of:

  • patent databases,
  • regulatory filings,
  • official communication channels,
  • investor documentation,
  • and product development listings

reveal no evidence of research into levitating footwear, “glide” concepts or any form of personal wearable mobility device.

Notably, several online posts claimed the shoes had been revealed at the Indian International Consumer Expo 2025. That event does not appear in trade registries, media archives or any known exhibition schedule. There is no website, no organisers and no participant list — strongly suggesting that the event is fictional.

Why So Many People Believed the Footage

Observers cite several reasons the false narrative spread so easily:

Tesla’s cultural status

Tesla’s history of unexpected product announcements has created a public expectation that the company may at any moment unveil something unconventional or technologically disruptive.

Advances in generative media

AI tools in late 2025 can produce videos that resemble real footage closely enough to bypass casual visual scrutiny.

Algorithmic amplification

Social platforms promote visually striking material regardless of its authenticity, enabling widespread exposure within minutes.

Public imagination around personal mobility

Hoverboards, exoskeletons and levitation devices have long occupied a place in popular culture. The Tesla Glide imagery tapped directly into that cultural reservoir.

The Broader Implications of the Tesla Glide Incident

The incident encapsulates a broader challenge facing both consumers and institutions: synthetic media is now able to simulate realistic technical demonstrations, blurring the boundary between innovation and illusion.

For regulators, the case illustrates the future difficulty of policing brand misrepresentation and deepfake-style product simulations. For technology companies, it raises the risk of reputation distortion through unauthorised AI imagery. And for news organisations, it underscores the need to apply rigorous verification standards to video content — a task that until recently was largely reserved for text-based reporting.

It also suggests that the public’s willingness to believe visually compelling technological imagery may outpace its critical capacity to verify it. In a media environment where AI can construct the illusion of innovation faster than engineers can build the real thing, misperception becomes an inherent feature of the landscape.

Conclusion: A Reflection of the Technological Moment

The Tesla Glide videos do not represent an early-stage product, an internal prototype or a leaked development project. They represent something else: the growing power of synthetic media to mimic innovation and the readiness of online audiences to accept such imagery as plausible.

As generative tools continue to improve, the task ahead for institutions, journalists and users will be to separate engineered reality from engineered imagination — a distinction increasingly difficult to discern.

Read about the life of Westminster and Pimlico district, London and the world. 24/7 news with fresh and useful updates on culture, business, technology and city life: PS5 lifecycle extended: Sony executive confirms current midpoint status