A Texas county with a riverbound footprint and a storied past
This week has seen major moves in AI infrastructure financing and buildouts. SpaceX has released renderings for Terafab, a more-than-100-million-square-foot semiconductor factory it plans in Texas that it values at at least $16.8bn for the initial phase. Separately, Nvidia has been reported to be negotiating a $250bn guarantee to back OpenAI’s proposed 10-gigawatt Ohio data‑centre lease and construction debt.
Zoox has received a temporary NHTSA exemption that allows it to charge fares for its purpose-built robotaxis and will start paid rides in Las Vegas on Aug. 10. The company can deploy up to 2,500 vehicles annually for two years under enhanced federal oversight while state and local approvals remain required for expansion.
Moove has raised $250 million in a Series C led by Mubadala, supporting its plan to scale autonomous-vehicle operations while continuing its human-driven fleet business. The funding values Moove at $2.1 billion and will fund depots, hiring, and expansion with Waymo partnerships.
Tesla has filed for tax incentives for a grand-scale solar factory in Texas, codenamed Project Crystal Sun. The facility aims to begin operations by Q1 2029, employing about 9,700 full-time workers. Musk has signaled a bold target of 100 GW of U.S. solar manufacturing capacity by 2028, though incentives and site competition remain uncertainties.
SpaceX has pledged $100 billion to build a 125,000‑acre Starbase in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, that it says will support thousands of Starship launches a year, add about 3,000 direct jobs and include propellant production, power generation and deep‑water shipping. Construction is scheduled to start in 2027; SpaceX targets initial launches by 2029 while state officials give a 2030 timeline.