Elon Musk’s ambitious plan to build what he describes as the largest building on Earth is facing growing concern from residents in Grimes County, Texas, where his Terafab semiconductor facility is already taking shape.
The 100-million-square-foot complex is intended to manufacture chips for Musk’s self-driving cars and Optimus robots. According to a tax abatement agreement signed by SpaceX with Grimes County, the development would also include natural gas-fired power plants and artificial intelligence facilities to be used in conjunction with the manufacturing process.
Musk announced the project on X earlier this month, describing Terafab as “a chip factory built for Earth and orbit” and calling it “the largest and most valuable building on Earth by far”. At its planned scale, the facility would be equivalent to about 2,300 football fields, dwarfing the average Target or Costco store, which is roughly the size of 2.5 football fields.
The project has been welcomed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who last week described it as a “significant expansion of [Musk’s] advancement in our great state” and praised its potential to create about 3,000 jobs in Grimes County. Yet the announcement has prompted residents to organise around concerns over how such a vast industrial development could transform their community.
The Grimes County Citizens for Responsible Development (GCCRD), headed by Marie Egyed, was formed to ensure that residents have a voice in decisions surrounding large-scale development. Grimes County has a population of about 30,000 and is located about 100 miles east of Austin and 70 miles northwest of Houston.
Egyed, who moved to the county from Houston eight years ago seeking “trying to live out a nice, peaceful rural life”, said she first became aware of the development plans in March after attending a local council meeting. Less than two months later, Musk announced plans for the semiconductor facility.
The GCCRD is not seeking to prevent development altogether. Instead, Egyed says residents want greater oversight, transparency and a role in negotiations. The group has proposed a 12-point initiative seeking “absolute, measurable protections” for data centres and related infrastructure, including safeguards for water, emergency medical services and roads, as well as adequate legal representation for the county when negotiating with companies such as SpaceX.
Concerns have also extended to the personal consequences of the development. Musk has already begun clearing land, and some residents are considering whether they can remain in the area.
Danny Cross, who has lived in Grimes County for 22 years, owns a 31-acre property adjoining the Terafab site and shares about 4,000 feet of fencing with Musk’s land. As land clearing continued, Cross and his wife decided to sell their home, despite having regarded it as their “forever house”.
For Egyed, the concerns extend beyond individual properties to the future character of the community. Residents face the prospect of increased traffic, road construction, thousands of construction workers, new RV parks and gas stations, as well as rising costs and changes to their quality of life.
“We’re not going to stop it. But maybe we can minimize the negative impact,” Egyed said. “What about our dreams? We saved up our entire lives to buy this property out here to live out in the country.”
