I think it's a self-selecting issue. Entrepreneurs who are content to start a business that pays for a comfortable life dont reach out to endless investors. They'll take loans, not stake in their company. They won't constantly reach for attention to justify higher valuations, and therefore higher investments. They're more likely to stay private and not go public for the same reason, which lessens awareness of them outside of direct customers.
Nobody would be talking about Tesla as much if it wasn't an investment device (and its CEO would likely be a less loudly evil person too). It'd just be a car manufacturer, and the only relevant thing about it would be the quality of its cars and the happiness of its customers. No investors to wonder about "growth potential".