Tesla Hires Intel Veteran to Lead Terafab Chip Project

Overview

• Tesla appointed Gary Jiang as Director, Tera Fab in June, the first publicly surfaced senior hire tied to the Austin Terafab effort.
• Jiang spent about 17–18 years at Intel and most recently managed technology transfer, tool installation and startup work for Intel’s 18A development-to-production efforts.
• Intel formally joined Terafab in April as the manufacturing partner and the venture targets Intel’s 14A process while planning a prototype scale that Elon Musk initially described as a roughly $20 billion project.
• SpaceX’s S‑1 filing raised public cost estimates far above Musk’s prototype figure, showing roughly $55 billion for initial phases and up to $119 billion if the build expands, but filings stress no binding commitments or final IP and financing terms.
• The hire underscores Tesla’s attempt to import factory expertise to close its lack of fab operating experience, and the next signs to watch are more senior manufacturing hires, formal contracts with Intel or SpaceX, and progress on the planned pilot line at Giga Texas.