The Paradox at the Heart of Elon Musk's Cybercab Vision

A sleek, gold car pulls up to a bustling corner market, and a middle-aged couple alights. A woman eases a suitcase into the same vehicle's spacious trunk. Later, a doodle and its master watch rocket videos in the front seat as the car eases around the neighborhood. That's the vision shown off by Tesla CEO Elon Musk last week during a presentation broadcast from a set at Warner Bros. Studio, outside of Los Angeles. Some 20 prototypes cruised the movie lot as a series of mocked-up images showed scenes of the idyllic tomorrow these sleek people-movers could usher us into.