SpaceX and Tesla’s Terafab semiconductor venture is targeting volume chip production by the third quarter of 2028, although Elon Musk has warned that the schedule is highly ambitious and carries significant execution risks.
Musk disclosed the tentative timeline during a SpaceX conference call on Tuesday, describing the target as an internal aspiration rather than a firm commitment. Reuters reported that the proposed project aims to produce 1 terawatt a year of computing power for artificial intelligence and robotics.
“I put big error bars on this because we don’t know if we will actually achieve this or not,” Musk said while discussing the schedule. He later described the proposed dates as “very aggressive” and said achieving volume production in the third or fourth quarter of 2028 was only among the possible outcomes.
Terafab is planned as a semiconductor complex in Texas that would combine advanced chip manufacturing, packaging and testing for both logic and memory products. The project is intended to support the computing requirements of SpaceX and Tesla, although the companies have not disclosed the full structure of their joint venture or the facility’s expected investment.
Musk said Terafab’s research facility in Austin aims to produce a functional first test chip using static random-access memory, or SRAM, circuits around May or June next year. Semiconductor manufacturers commonly use SRAM circuits during manufacturing-process development and to refine production techniques.
The timeline places substantial pressure on the project’s construction, engineering and equipment-acquisition programmes. In the United States, advanced logic factories can take three or more years to build, while the production equipment required for leading-edge chips is complex, expensive and subject to limited global supply.
During the call, a sell-side analyst asked whether Terafab had placed orders for extreme ultraviolet lithography machines made by Dutch equipment supplier ASML. EUV systems are required for manufacturing some of the most advanced chips used by companies such as Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices.
Musk did not directly confirm whether orders had been placed. Instead, he said Terafab was appreciative of ASML and other suppliers for accelerating equipment deliveries to support the proposed schedule. The project may also need equipment from United States-based suppliers such as Applied Materials and KLA.
Intel said in April that it would join the Terafab project to help accelerate its goals. Intel also published a photograph of its chief executive, Lip-Bu Tan, with Musk after hosting him at an Intel campus. The companies have not explained how the collaboration will operate in practice.
Earlier this month, Musk said Terafab had discussed possible cooperation with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest advanced chip manufacturer. He later said the project remained committed to operating the facility itself.
For now, Terafab’s next stated milestone is the development of the first SRAM test chip at the Austin research facility, followed by the proposed volume-production target in the third quarter of 2028. Musk said the dates remain subject to substantial uncertainty.
