Tesla, SpaceX Sue TERA-print Over "Terafab" Chip Factory Trademark Dispute

Tesla (TSLA) and SpaceX filed a lawsuit Sunday in federal court in Austin, Texas, seeking a judicial declaration that their planned "Terafab" chip factory does not infringe a trademark held by nanotechnology company TERA-print. The facility has not yet broken ground. TERA-print, based in Illinois, holds the registered trademark "Tera-Fab" and sent cease-and-desist notices to both companies, arguing the names are confusingly similar. The two sides held multiple negotiations, most recently on September 2, 2026, but failed to reach agreement. Tesla filed three "Terafab" trademark applications with the USPTO in May 2026. The companies argue no confusion exists because TERA-print makes desktop lithography printing equipment for bioengineering, while Terafab is planned as an industrial-scale chip plant in Grimes County, Texas, producing logic and memory chips for Tesla's Optimus robot, Cybercab and SpaceX space data centers. The court will decide whether Tesla and SpaceX can retain the name.