Tesla’s long-promoted vision of a fully autonomous Robotaxi fleet is facing renewed scrutiny after prominent investor Ross Gerber voiced serious concerns about the reliability of Full Self-Driving (FSD) v14, specifically version v14.2.2.25. Gerber, once one of Tesla’s most vocal bulls, shared his doubts following real-world testing in late December 2025, highlighting issues that could have major implications for Tesla’s autonomy roadmap.
Rain and Sunlight: A Critical Weak Point
Gerber’s primary criticism centers on how Tesla FSD handles environmental conditions such as rain and direct sunlight factors that are unavoidable for any scalable autonomous driving service. During a test drive in his Tesla Cybertruck, Gerber reported that FSD struggled heavily in rainy conditions. He shared an image on X (formerly Twitter) showing a system alert stating: “Autopilot Visibility Limited. Clear dirt or debris on cameras.”
According to Gerber, the cameras were not dirty. Instead, rain itself appeared to interfere with Tesla’s vision-based sensor system. This raises uncomfortable questions about Tesla’s decision to rely solely on cameras while rejecting LiDAR and radar technologies used by many competing autonomous driving developers to provide redundancy in poor visibility.
Vision-Only Strategy Under Fire
Tesla’s “pure vision” approach has long been championed by CEO Elon Musk as the fastest path to scalable autonomy. However, Gerber’s experience suggests that cameras alone may struggle in common real-world scenarios. His widely shared comment “Not sure of Tesla’s plans if FSD doesn’t work well in rain or direct sunlight…” captures growing investor anxiety.
For a Robotaxi service to function at Level 4 or Level 5 autonomy, vehicles must operate safely without human intervention in nearly all conditions. If FSD performance degrades during rain or glare-heavy sunlight, the economic model for an unmanned Robotaxi fleet becomes far more complex and less viable.
A Notable Shift in Investor Sentiment
What makes Gerber’s criticism particularly impactful is its timing. Only weeks earlier, he had praised FSD v14 as a “significant leap forward.” His sudden shift reflects frustration with what he views as potential hardware limitations rather than just software tuning issues. Gerber has encouraged other FSD users to test the system in adverse weather to determine whether the problem is widespread.
Human Monitoring Still Required
Adding context to these concerns, recent reports indicate Tesla is hiring “AI Operators” in California, Nevada, and Arizona. These employees reportedly sit in the driver’s seat to monitor Robotaxi operations, with incentives such as overtime and $500 referral bonuses. This suggests Tesla remains heavily reliant on human oversight, despite ambitious claims of imminent full autonomy.
What This Means for Tesla
Gerber’s comments underscore a growing tension between Tesla’s autonomy promises and real-world performance. As competition in autonomous driving intensifies, Tesla’s ability to address weather-related sensor reliability may prove crucial to the future of FSD and the Robotaxi dream itself.
