Trevor Milton founder of Nikola posted the video in January of 2018 and since then it has received over 260,000 views.
However, the original footage showed a lorry operating under the power of gravity, opposed to the hydrogen/electric powerplant, which led to investment.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission is now investigating the finding, despite actual footage of a working vehicle being released in 2019.
In the 2018 video, the text on screen stated, “Behold the 1,000 HP zero-emission Nikola One semi-truck in motion.”
The company has now admitted that the hydrogen fuel cell did not work, but other key components did, such as the gearbox, batteries, and internal controls.
“As Nikola pivoted to the next generation of trucks, it ultimately decided not to invest additional resources into completing the process to make the Nikola One drive on its own propulsion,” in response to a report from Hindenburg research has said.
Nikola has recently been in the news after signing into a partnership with US General Motors.
However, following the release of the video announcement, shares in both companies have reduced.
