The rise of Cursor: The This blog post summarizes a podcast interview with Michael Tru, co-founder and CEO of AnySphere, the company behind Cursor, an AI-powered code editor. The conversation explores Cursor's rapid growth, the future of software development, and the role of AI in shaping the industry. Cursor's Vision: A World Beyond Code - Goal: To invent a new way of programming, moving beyond traditional coding. Approach: Cursor aims to build software by specifying * intent* rather than writing code. This involves a shift towards a higher-level, more human-readable representation of software logic. Growth: Cursor achieved ">(300M ARR AI tool that engineers can’t stop using | Michael Truell Cursor: Reimagining Software Development in a Post-Code World - This blog post summarizes a podcast interview with Michael Tru, co-founder and CEO of AnySphere, the company behind Cursor, an AI-powered code editor. The conversation explores Cursor's rapid growth, the future of software development, and the role of AI in shaping the industry. Cursor's Vision: A World Beyond Code - Goal: To invent a new way of programming, moving beyond traditional coding. Approach: Cursor aims to build software by specifying * intent* rather than writing code. This involves a shift towards a higher-level, more human-readable representation of software logic. Growth: Cursor achieved )100 million ARR in just 18 months, showcasing its rapid adoption. This exponential growth was attributed to consistent improvement and addressing user needs. EPO: Revolutionizing Experimentation - EPO (Experimentation Platform): A platform enabling rapid A/B testing and feature management. It's used by companies like Airbnb, Snowflake, and Twitch to accelerate growth and improve product performance. Key Features: Advanced statistical methods, accessible UI, deep analysis capabilities, and streamlined reporting. EPO significantly reduces the time required for experimentation. Benefits: Increased experimentation velocity, improved data analysis, and faster iteration cycles. The Future of Software Engineering: A Designer's World - Shift from Code to Logic: The future of software development involves moving away from writing code towards specifying the logic of the software in a more human-readable format, closer to natural language. The Role of "Taste": Taste becomes increasingly crucial, encompassing not only visual design (UI/UX) but also the overall design and logic of the software. It's about effortlessly translating the desired functionality into a working product. Engineers as Logic Designers: Software engineers will transition from writing code to specifying intent , acting more as designers who define the software's functionality. Cursor's Origin Story and the Role of AI - Early Days: Cursor's development began with a desire to create a more useful AI product than existing vaporware. The team was inspired by the success of GitHub Copilot. AI's Role: Cursor leverages AI to assist in various aspects of software development, including code completion, suggestion, and debugging. The Human in the Loop: While AI plays a significant role, Cursor emphasizes the importance of maintaining human control over the development process. The goal is to empower engineers, not replace them. Cursor's Architecture and Model Development - Custom Models: Cursor uses a combination of large language models (LLMs) and smaller, specialized models. The smaller models are trained for specific tasks, such as code completion, improving speed and cost-effectiveness . Model Selection: The team strategically chooses which tasks are best suited for foundation models versus custom models, focusing on areas where custom models can offer significant advantages. Defensibility: The use of custom models provides a key competitive advantage, creating a moat against competitors. The market is characterized by a high ceiling and potential for significant disruption. User Success with Cursor and Future Directions - Key Tips for Success: Users should focus on breaking down large tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks. This allows for better control and iterative refinement using AI assistance. Benefits for All Skill Levels: Cursor benefits both junior and senior engineers, although the ways they leverage the tool differ. The Future of Engineering Roles: The demand for software engineers will continue, but the nature of their work will evolve. AI will automate many tasks, allowing engineers to focus on higher-level design and problem-solving. Key Takeaways Cursor represents a significant step towards a new paradigm of software development, where specifying intent is more important than writing code. AI plays a crucial role in this transformation, but human expertise remains essential . The market for AI-powered code editors is large and dynamic, with potential for significant disruption. Cursor's success is based on a combination of innovative technology, rapid iteration, and a focus on user needs. This summary provides a structured overview of the podcast. The original transcript contains more detailed information and nuanced discussions. The rise of Cursor: The Cursor's Rapid Growth and Success: Cursor, an AI-powered code editor, achieved remarkable growth, reaching ">(300M ARR AI tool that engineers can’t stop using | Michael Truell Cursor's Goal and Vision: Cursor aims to revolutionize software development by inventing a new way of building software, moving beyond traditional coding. The vision is a world "after code," where engineers act more as logic designers, specifying intent rather than writing code. This involves a shift towards a higher-level, more human-readable representation of software logic, closer to pseudocode or even natural language. The ultimate goal is to make software development more accessible and intuitive, even for those without extensive coding experience. Cursor's Rapid Growth and Success: Cursor, an AI-powered code editor, achieved remarkable growth, reaching )100 million ARR in just 18 months and $300 million ARR within two years of launch. This rapid growth is attributed to several factors, including a focus on building a consistently better product, driven by sustained paranoia about improvement and user feedback. The initial version was built quickly (in about three months), with a focus on iterative development and public feedback. The team's willingness to rebuild and iterate based on user feedback was crucial. The Role of AI in Cursor: Cursor leverages AI extensively. While initially relying on existing large language models, Cursor now incorporates custom models for specific tasks, particularly in code completion and suggestion. This counterintuitively involved less focus on training models from scratch and more on leveraging pre-trained models and fine-tuning them for specific use cases. The custom models are designed to complement the strengths of larger foundation models, addressing specific weaknesses and improving speed and cost-effectiveness. These models excel at tasks like auto-completing code diffs (changes in the codebase), providing fast and accurate suggestions within milliseconds. The use of smaller, specialized models for specific tasks allows for faster inference and lower costs compared to using large models for everything. The Future of Software Engineering and Cursor's Role: Michael predicts a future where software engineering will be less about writing code and more about specifying intent. "Taste" – the ability to envision and design the desired software experience – will become increasingly valuable. This involves less translation between a high-level vision and the code implementation, and more direct specification of the desired outcome. Cursor's approach focuses on giving human engineers control over the process, even as AI handles many of the implementation details. The IDE itself will evolve, potentially integrating with other tools like Slack and issue trackers. Cursor's Development Process and User Tips: Cursor's development involved a rapid, iterative process, initially using a hand-rolled editor before switching to a VS Code base. The team prioritized building in public and incorporating user feedback. For users, the most successful approach is to break down complex tasks into smaller, more manageable chunks and iteratively refine the AI's suggestions. This helps manage the complexity and allows for better control over the AI's output. Users should also develop a "taste" for the AI's capabilities and limitations, understanding what it excels at and where it might need more guidance. The Impact of Cursor on Different Engineer Levels: Cursor benefits both junior and senior engineers. Junior engineers can leverage the AI to learn and improve their skills, while senior engineers can use it to increase efficiency and tackle more complex tasks. However, both groups can fall into anti-patterns: junior engineers might over-rely on the AI, while senior engineers might underutilize it. Cursor's Hiring Process and Company Culture: Cursor employs a unique two-day work test for potential hires, involving a real-world project to assess their skills and cultural fit. This approach helps scale the hiring process while ensuring a strong cultural match. The company is growing rapidly, with a significant focus on engineering, research, and design. Long-Term Defensibility in the AI Market: Michael discusses the challenges of long-term defensibility in the rapidly evolving AI market. He believes that building the best product and consistently delivering value are key to success, rather than relying solely on proprietary technology. The market is large enough for multiple players, but sustained innovation and a strong focus on user needs are crucial for long-term survival. The Future of Software Engineering and the Role of Engineers: Michael envisions a future where software development is significantly accelerated and simplified by AI, but where human engineers remain essential. The demand for software far outstrips the current capacity to build it, and AI tools like Cursor have the potential to dramatically increase productivity. However, the role of engineers will evolve, requiring new skills and a different approach to problem-solving.