Sometimes it feels like billionaire Elon Musk – the Paypal co-founder and and main force behind SpaceX and Tesla Motors – is single handedly revitalising that mid-20th Century spirit of can-do capitalism, upgraded with a eco-green racing stripe. He's a company owner that's captured the public imagination in a way that makes Apple's Steve Jobs seem so pedestrian. Elon also says he can bring a human telepathy device to market in four years, and that he's planning to build a city on Mars. His company Tesla Motors is worth 125 times more per car it produces than General Motors. How much of his empire is based on reality? How much is based on his cult of personality? And what does it tell us about a world tired of cynicism and searching for a hero?  To discuss we're joined by our friend, ecologist and computer geek, Rafael Schouten.