Elon Musk stated that TSMC will not manufacture Terafab, Tesla's AI chip complex.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said on Wednesday that his companies will build and run the Terafab AI chip complex, with TSMC possibly subleasing a part of it. Terafab is a planned Tesla-SpaceX project in Texas that aims to build "a gigantic chip fab" to make artificial intelligence chips.

Replying to a post on X that suggested TSMC owning and running the fab was the most likely outcome, Musk wrote: "No, we will build and run the fab. Let there be ZERO doubt about that." He added: "Maybe TSMC subleases part of the Terafab if they want, but nothing more than that."

Last week, Musk had said that there had been discussions about potential cooperation with TSMC on the Terafab project, without providing further details. Earlier on Wednesday, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan told Bloomberg News that the US chipmaker, which is a partner in the project, will remain involved.

Any involvement by TSMC could challenge Intel's role in Terafab as Musk weighs partners for the chipmaking venture. TSMC and Intel did not immediately respond to requests for comment.