I doubt that a laser can pop a tire unless it is watts and watts and watts plus many watts.
When I got my 1st hi-power laser, a 200mw green, I got curious about some little things that I noticed when burning electrical tape for the first time.
Then I expanded the experiment, burning black plastic and rubber objects of various thicknesses. And other things.
First, there is a tendancy for objects to form a layer of carbon on the surface... which seems to start PROTECTING the object.
I have a bookcase, a light tan / yellow / SLIGHTLY brownish color - IMITATION wood, kinda "plasticy"; for some reason it is unexpectedly sensitive to lasers. It is the same material all of the way through. I can burn little black holes in it (200mw 532nm, ~380mw 660nm), but NOT all of the way through... ONLY to a point... and then it stops smoking. It makes a little carbon-filled "pit" which doesn't burn anymore.
When materials melt, you get a tiny pool of carbonized "ooze", which flows (in a small way), and *conducts heat away from the target area*.
Rubber doesn't burn that well at all, past a certain point. I think it is that "ooze" effect.
Also, the "rubber" in tires is designed to take a higher amount of heat and abuse.
(And why is he SUGGESTING that a laser can be used to pop a tire in the first place? Hmmm?)