Elon Musk clarifies Taiwan Semiconductor’s role in Terafab project

Elon Musk has settled the question of who will operate Terafab, his planned AI chip factory in Texas. The answer is Tesla and SpaceX, not Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. In an October 7, 2026 post on X, Musk said his companies will construct and manage the facility in Grimes County, Texas, on their own. TSMC, the world’s go-to contract chipmaker, gets no operational seat at the table. It might rent a corner of the building. “No, we will build and run the fab.” — Elon Musk What Musk actually said about TSMC The chatter started around October 2 and 3, when talk surfaced of preliminary discussions between Musk and TSMC. Investors quickly began asking whether the Taiwanese giant would help run the project. Musk’s clarification draws a firm line. Tesla and SpaceX will own the build and the day-to-day operations. The only TSMC scenario he left open was the chipmaker potentially subleasing part of the facility. He did not slam the door entirely, though. Musk characterized the earlier talks with TSMC as mere conversations that could still lead somewhere, stating they were “just discussions, but something may come of it.” Meanwhile, a different chip company already holds a confirmed ...