Agree--the adoring fans, the huge amounts of money, the years of "this guy is the real-life Tony Stark!" talk went to his head, and he sort of became a parody of his worst impulses.

He already had the money. And plenty of people get lost down this "terminally online" rabbit hole that don't have all the fans and adulation, though I agree that's a component of it. But I think to some extent there are just some personalities that is predisposed to succumb to this, though I think we're all vulnerable to some degree.

That is, I don't think what's going on with him is actually unique at all. All that's unique about it is the level of impact and visibility his deterioration has been able to have because of who he is.

It’s very simple. As Tesla grew, the company figured out how to manage Musk’s worst impulses. It has an immune response to Musk’s malignant narcissism.

Twitter does not have an immune response. It’s like a colonizer introducing a new disease to an ecosystem. Twitter didn’t know how to handle Musk, and so it just amplified his worst tendencies.

He was always a malignant narcissist. But he probably did get worse. It’s like an alcoholic suddenly owning a bar.