At an X Takeover event livestreamed Saturday to a crowd of customers and investors outside Tesla's gigafactory in Austin, Texas, Musk said he has "no idea how to make microchips, we'll figure it out." He argued his companies have built a lot of custom machinery and, after touring rival facilities, he had not seen much bespoke kit there. That, he suggested, is how they could improve the manufacturing process.
Through a joint venture linking Tesla and SpaceX with Intel Corp., Musk has initiated plans for a Terrafab plant in Grimes, Texas, launching with over $15 billion in initial funding. The project is expected to create 3,000 jobs and will receive a $30 million grant from the Texas Enterprise Fund. Plans call for a 100-million-square-foot facility built in phases on roughly 3,000 acres. SpaceX currently has control of more than 13,000 acres in the area.
Building chips in-house is the most capital-hungry bet in technology. Market Briefs covers the semiconductor race free every morning.
After SpaceX went public in June, its stock recently climbed above the $135 IPO mark, a surge that resulted in Musk becoming the world's first trillionaire. SpaceX is nearing an agreement with Grain Management LLC, an investment firm, to acquire spectrum, paving the way for a mobile offering that would compete with T-Mobile US Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. and AT&T Inc.
Tesla delivered 486,532 vehicles worldwide in the third quarter, topping the 463,761 average analyst estimate compiled by Bloomberg. That outcome follows a period of weaker vehicle sales and underperforming shares, and the company says it expects to invest over $25 billion this year to scale factories and kick off the robotaxi venture. To back that effort, Tesla has secured $30 billion in new loans and credit lines.
What it means for your wallet: If chips, factories and mobile ambitions all move forward, where value shows up across Musk's ecosystem could look different. The signal to watch is how delivery momentum, heavy capex, and fresh financing show up in execution over the next few quarters.
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