Intel has reportedly landed Tesla as its primary customer for the upcoming 14A chip manufacturing process. This collaboration was revealed by a recent report from Reuters. Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk, disclosed that the company intends to utilize Intel’s 14A process for crafting chips for its Terafab project, an advanced AI chip facility situated in Austin, Texas. Following this announcement, Intel’s stock saw a 3.6 percent surge in after-hours trading.
The partnership between Intel and Tesla aligns with Musk’s overarching vision to construct extensive computing infrastructure. Recently, Intel joined forces with Tesla and SpaceX in the proposed Terafab complex, aimed at producing processors for robotics systems and data centers.
Despite these developments, the Terafab initiative is still in its nascent stages. Musk has outlined plans for establishing two cutting-edge chip fabrication plants at the site: one dedicated to powering vehicles and humanoid robots, and the other focused on space-oriented data centers. However, critical specifics such as funding, operational oversight, and project timelines are yet to be clearly defined.
Musk envisions the facility potentially generating an annual computing capacity of one terawatt, surpassing the current half-terawatt capacity across the United States. Analysts at Bernstein estimate that realizing such capacity could necessitate a capital investment ranging from $5 trillion to $13 trillion, as indicated in the Reuters report.