Tesla Inc ( TSLA ) shares are rising Monday. CEO Elon Musk revealed over the weekend that the company's "Terafab Project" will officially launch in less than one week.

Tesla stock is building positive momentum. What’s driving TSLA shares up?

Musk's Tease Lifts Tesla Stock

On Saturday, Musk said in an X post that the Terafab would launch in a week, fueling speculation about Tesla's next move in securing chip supply for its AI ambitions.

According to Reuters reporting cited by Benzinga, Tesla is already developing its fifth‑generation AI chip, known as AI5, which will power future versions of Full Self‑Driving and the company's robotics platform. The Terafab reflects Tesla's conclusion that relying solely on outside chip suppliers won't be enough to support the massive volumes required for millions of autonomous vehicles and Optimus robots.

Why Tesla Says It Needs Its Own Chip Fab

Musk has been open about the company's chip constraints. At last year's shareholder meeting, he said even the most optimistic production forecasts from suppliers wouldn't meet Tesla's long‑term needs. He described the idea of a Tesla‑built fab as a "terafab," adding that it would have to be "gigantic" to support the company's future AI hardware requirements.

During Tesla's fourth‑quarter earnings call in January, Musk and CFO Vaibhav Taneja reiterated that the company may need a domestic facility capable of producing logic chips, memory and packaging, Barron’s reported. Without it, Musk warned, Tesla's growth could be capped by supplier output — especially for memory, which he called an even bigger bottleneck than AI logic chips.

A Project With Enormous Capital Needs

Building a semiconductor fab is one an expensive undertakings in the tech world. Tesla expects to spend around $20 billion on equipment this year alone, though that figure does not include the Terafab.

It's unclear what Tesla will reveal next week. The announcement could involve site selection, early spending plans, a construction timeline or potential partnerships.

The Technical Picture

Tesla is trading 1.9% below its 20-day SMA and 8.2% below its 100-day SMA, showing the near-term trend is still under pressure even as the longer-term uptrend is trying to hold. Shares are up 66.85% over the past 12 months and are positioned closer to their 52-week highs than lows.

RSI is at 39.69, which sits in neutral territory but leans toward weaker momentum versus the midline. MACD is at -7.0511 and just below its signal line at -7.0383, keeping bearish pressure in place as the histogram remains slightly negative at -0.0128.

The combination of RSI in the 30–50 range and bearish MACD suggests mixed momentum.

Key Resistance: $420.50

Key Support: $387.50

Analyst Consensus & Recent Actions: The stock carries a Buy Rating with an average price target of $414.07. Recent analyst moves include:

GLJ Research: Sell (Maintains Target to $25.28) (Mar. 12)

GLJ Research: Sell (Maintains Target to $25.28) (Feb. 19)

Tigress Financial: Buy (Target $550.00) (Feb. 12)

Benzinga Edge Rankings: Benzinga’s Edge scorecard for Tesla highlights its strengths and weaknesses compared to the broader market.

Momentum: Bullish (Score: 86.25) — The stock is showing strong relative strength versus the broader market, consistent with its longer-term uptrend.

Quality: Neutral (Score: 63.37) — Fundamentals screen as solid but not elite, suggesting execution still matters for sustaining the premium multiple.

Value: Neutral (Score: 3.24) — The score signals valuation is stretched versus typical value benchmarks, leaving less room for error if growth expectations cool.

The Verdict: Tesla’s Benzinga Edge signal reveals a momentum-driven profile with decent quality characteristics, but valuation remains a key risk factor. For longer-term bulls, the setup improves if price can reclaim key moving averages; for cautious traders, the 200-day area and nearby support are the levels that matter most.

TSLA Price Action: Tesla shares were up 1.64% at $397.62 at the time of publication on Monday, according to Benzinga Pro.

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