[xiaopingguo]

I guess the real question is what is success? If you do not think climate change is a big problem or do not have a disproportionate fear of asteroids, then most of Elon Musk's work seem to be tilting at windmills.

Personally, I do not think we are going to get anywhere in space travel without space elevator tech, funding for which may actually be reduced if Spacex shows initial success but fails later. And certainly the reports of work culture at these companies are damaging to individuals and society at large.

Extreme efforts in any one direction always have this as a drawback. A more daoist or pragmatic approach to life and its problems would be more efficient.