--- title: "💢💢💢" type: "Topics" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/topics/39995112.md" description: "🚀 Is Musk About to “Force His Way” into TSMC's Heartland? $Tesla(TSLA.US) Builds Its Own Chip Factory, A $200 Billion Gamble on AI Manufacturing Supremacy. This time, Musk isn't optimizing the supply chain; he's trying to rewrite it. While the vast majority of tech companies are still scrambling for TSMC's production capacity, Elon Musk has already started asking a more radical question: What if we just build our own chips? His answer is a plan called Terafab. This is no ordinary project. With an investment scale of $200 to $250 billion, its goal is to achieve 1 terawatt-level computing power annually..." datetime: "2026-04-17T11:19:46.000Z" locales: - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/topics/39995112.md) - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/topics/39995112.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/topics/39995112.md) author: "[辰逸](https://longbridge.com/en/profiles/16318663.md)" --- # 💢💢💢 🚀 Is Musk About to "Storm" TSMC's Home Turf? $Tesla(TSLA.US) Builds Its Own Chip Factory, a $200 Billion Gamble on AI Manufacturing Dominance Musk isn't optimizing the supply chain this time; he's trying to rewrite it. While the vast majority of tech companies are still scrambling for TSMC's production capacity, Elon Musk is already asking a more radical question: What if we just build our own chips? And his answer is a plan called Terafab. This is no ordinary project. With an investment scale of $200 to $250 billion, it aims directly at achieving 1 terawatt-level of computing power annually. This scale isn't about a single company expanding production; it's an attempt to define the next generation of AI infrastructure. What's even more critical is the pace of advancement. Musk's team has issued a "lightning-fast response" requirement to Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron, and Lam Research—not on a quarterly basis, not a monthly rhythm, but compressing the decision cycle to a "daily" unit. Even during the Friday holiday, suppliers were required to submit quotes and delivery cycles by the following Monday. This really only says one thing: the time window is rapidly closing. Looking at the execution path, this plan doesn't aim to replicate TSMC's scale from the start. The first step is to build a pilot line within the existing Austin factory, processing 3,000 wafers per month, with the goal of achieving silicon chip manufacturing capability by 2029, then gradually expanding. This means Musk isn't "directly benchmarking" but is trying to enter with a faster starting point and gradually close in. The purpose of these chips also explains why he must do this. xAI, the Optimus humanoid robot, Robotaxi, and SpaceX's space data center—the common thread among these businesses is that the demand for customized AI chips is rising exponentially. The problem is, the existing supply chain isn't designed for this kind of demand. Standard GPUs can solve part of the problem, but when the application scenarios become real-time decision-making for autonomous driving, robot perception and control, or even computing in space environments, the efficiency of "general-purpose chips" starts to become a bottleneck. This is where Musk is trying to break through: shifting from "relying on the strongest suppliers" to "mastering the most core manufacturing capabilities." The market has already given its first reaction. After the news broke, Tokyo Electron's stock price rose 6%, and several semiconductor equipment manufacturers strengthened simultaneously. This shows one thing—the capital market doesn't see this as a "fantasy" but as potential orders. But the real difficulty is something everyone in the industry knows well. Advanced processes aren't about single-point breakthroughs; they are a systems engineering project involving hundreds of process steps. From lithography and etching to deposition and packaging, each step requires years of accumulation. And an advanced wafer fab, from construction to stable mass production, often takes several years. This is precisely why Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger chose to join—not because it's easy, but because the difficulty is high enough to be worth getting in early. He has confirmed that Intel will be deeply involved in Terafab and jointly develop processors for robots and hyperscale data centers. This step actually changes the nature of the entire project. It's no longer just Tesla's "vertical integration"; it's starting to become an attempt that could reshape industrial division of labor. The question returns to the core point: What exactly is TSMC's moat? Is it technological leadership? Yield control? Or decades of built-up customer trust? Musk clearly believes these are all important, but the most critical is "time." With enough capital + enough demand + a sufficiently urgent execution pace, it's possible to tear open a gap at certain nodes. But reality is equally clear: the semiconductor industry is one of the high-tech fields that almost least allows for "shortcuts." Which outcome are you leaning towards? Is this a long-term breakthrough that will change the industry landscape, or a high-risk experiment slowed down by time and complexity? ### Related Stocks - [TSLA.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TSLA.US.md) - [INTC.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/INTC.US.md) - [TOELY.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TOELY.US.md) - [TSDD.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TSDD.US.md) - [TSLL.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TSLL.US.md) - [TSLQ.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TSLQ.US.md) - [09366.HK](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/09366.HK.md) - [07766.HK](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/07766.HK.md) - [07366.HK](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/07366.HK.md) - [TSLR.US](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/TSLR.US.md) - [04335.HK](https://longbridge.com/en/quote/04335.HK.md)