“It felt like you were driving in this future dream car,” says Mike Schwede, an entrepreneur based between Zurich and London. For him, driving a Tesla used to feel special.

“People on the streets really liked it,” Schwede says. “I got so many thumbs-up.”

When Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk, became a supporter of Donald Trump and spearheaded his so-called “department of government efficiency”, Schwede’s thoughts about his car changed.

“You kind of sit in a right-wing car, without having any power to influence this. So I thought, OK, every kilometre I’m driving, I will donate 10 cents to US anti-racism and LGBTQ foundations to get some money to people … Elon doesn’t like, so that’s my way of revenge.”

In this episode, the Guardian’s global technology editor, Dan Milmo, talks to Michael Safi about the recent protests against Tesla, and we hear from current and former Tesla enthusiasts, Jim, Mika and Kam, about what they think of Elon Musk’s rise in US politics.

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