---
title: "World's Largest Terafab Chip Plant: New Construction Site Photos Emerge from Texas"
description: "New drone footage from Texas showcases active construction progress on Terafab, a joint Tesla and SpaceX chip manufacturing plant spanning over 900k sq. meters."
date: 2026-09-27T10:45:27.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/worlds-largest-terafab-chip-plant-texas-photos
tags: [terafab, tesla, spacex, elon-musk, chips, texas]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# World's Largest Terafab Chip Plant: New Construction Site Photos Emerge from Texas

![Construction site of the Terafab plant in Texas from an aerial view](https://xab.info/media/2026/09/27/krupneisii-v-mire-zavod-cipov-terafab-foto-stroitelstva/krupneisii-v-mire-zavod-cipov-terafab-foto-stroitelstva-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- The Terafab plant is being built in Grimes County, Texas, on the site of a former coal power plant.
- The project is a joint effort by Tesla and SpaceX to produce chips for AI systems, Optimus robots, and Cybercabs.
- The main complex will exceed 900,000 sq. meters, with phase one investments ranging from $16.8 billion to $55 billion.

New drone footage captured by independent observer Joe Tegtmeyer in Grimes County, Texas, clearly demonstrates significant progress in the large-scale Terafab project. This is an ambitious joint initiative between Tesla and SpaceX aimed at creating the world's largest semiconductor manufacturing complex. The construction site is attracting immense attention from the tech industry due to its unprecedented infrastructure deployment speed.

### Current Construction Details and Project Scale

Compared to the previous flight over the area recorded on September 11, noticeable changes have occurred at the construction site. Specifically, massive concrete support bases have appeared on the large rectangular foundation section, and reinforcing bars for subsequent large-scale concrete pouring have been prepared right next to them. Simultaneously, contractors are actively expanding the tree-clearing zone for future buildings, while previously installed temporary Starlink communication antennas have been promptly relocated to new positions to ensure uninterrupted internet service for the facility.

The Terafab construction giant is rising near the scenic Gibbons Creek Reservoir on the site of a former coal-fired power plant. According to the approved design, the complex will feature vertically integrated next-generation microchip manufacturing. These chips are planned to be used for complex tasks in artificial intelligence, powering future Tesla Optimus humanoid robots, Cybercab autonomous taxis, and building specialized SpaceX infrastructure designed for orbital data centers.

### Economic Indicators and Prospects

The scale of the future enterprise is staggering: the total area of the main technological complex is expected to exceed a massive 900,000 square meters. Implementing such a grand industrial plan requires colossal financial investment. For instance, the first phase of the project is estimated by experts and official documents at over 16.8 billion US dollars. Meanwhile, launching the enterprise will create about 3,000 new highly skilled jobs directly in the region.

### Contradictory Data

Despite official figures setting the first-phase budget at $16.8 billion, other financial estimates are circulating in open sources and expert circles. Several analytical publications and specialized blogs, citing internal calculations, report that total investments by SpaceX and partners in the long term could reach a staggering $55 billion. Such discrepancies in figures arise because some sources account for long-term infrastructure development, modernization of adjacent energy facilities, and the deployment of full vertical integration cycles, while others rely solely on initial launch estimates.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Крупнейший в мире завод по производству чипов Terafab. Появились фото с места строительства](https://www.ixbt.com/news/2026/09/27/438561-krupneisii-v-mire-zavod-po-proizvodstvu-cipov-terafab-poiavilis-foto-s-mesta-stroitelstva.html) - Основной источник по кадрам с дрона Джо Тегтмейера и деталям первой фазы.
- [SpaceX планирует потратить $55 млрд на строительство завода Terafab в Техасе](https://overclockers.ru/blog/Nacvark/show/255103/SpaceX-planiruet-potratit-55-mlrd-na-stroitel-stvo-zavoda-Terafab-v-Tehase) - Альтернативная оценка долгосрочных инвестиций в 55 млрд долларов.
- [Илон Маск намерен запустить новый проект Terafab в штате Техас](https://www.akm.ru/news/ilon_mask_nameren_zapustit_novyy_proekt_terafab_v_shtate_tekhas/) - Контекст о целях проекта для ИИ и роботов.
- [Илон Маск объявил о планах строительства крупнейшего в мире завода по производству микросхем](https://rus.err.ee/1609976529/ilon-mask-objavil-o-planah-stroitelstva-krupnejshego-v-mire-zavoda-po-proizvodstvu-mikroshem) - Подтверждение масштабности проекта.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Where is the Terafab plant being built?
**A:** The plant is being erected in Grimes County, Texas, near the Gibbons Creek Reservoir on the site of a former coal-fired power plant.

### Q: Which companies are involved in the Terafab project?
**A:** The project is a joint initiative between Tesla and Elon Musk's SpaceX.

### Q: What is the estimated cost and scale of the project?
**A:** The main complex will exceed 900,000 sq. meters. Phase one is estimated at over $16.8 billion (with long-term projections reaching up to $55 billion).