- We, as a species, tend to attribute way too much credit to the people in key roles and not enough to the people around them. You see this in sports, in tech, and in politics. I wish there was a name for this cognitive failure, because I see it all the time and it really deserves its own name.

- The second point - as to the merit of Musk. You've already discussed his managerial and technical excellence - but for me, what sets him aside from many other highly talented peers (Zuckerberg, Page, etc) is that he focused on very concrete 'solid' problems. Facebook is a marvel, but to me, rocket science will always remain more impressive than social media. This willingness to take on incredibly difficult problems is something that I really admire - which is also why I love what Gates is trying to do with his foundation.