Will Cursor Get Crushed by Tech Giants? Dev's Take

Why I Started Using Cursor

To be honest, when I first heard about Cursor, I was skeptical. Another AI programming tool? Wasn't GitHub Copilot already good enough?

But my friend kept recommending it, so I gave it a try and found it actually pretty interesting. What attracted me most about Cursor is that unlike other tools that just add an AI plugin to existing editors, it was designed around AI from the very beginning to create the entire coding experience.

What surprised me most was that switching from VS Code was almost effortless. After all, Cursor is built on top of VS Code, so all my shortcuts, plugins, and themes work directly. But at the same time, I get to enjoy smarter code generation, natural language editing, and can even ask it questions about the entire project.

After using it for a few months, it's definitely improved my efficiency. Especially when writing repetitive code, I just describe what I need and it generates code that's pretty much spot-on.

But Now I'm Getting Worried

However, the more I use it, the more I'm starting to worry. Not about Cursor being bad, but about how long it can survive.

The Cost Problem: Every AI Call Burns Money

First, there's the cost issue. Cursor's website is pretty honest about it - running large language models is expensive. Every time I ask it to generate code or answer questions, it's calling OpenAI or Claude APIs behind the scenes, and all of that costs money.

I'm currently using the Pro version at $20 per month. Honestly, for the efficiency boost it provides, the price is reasonable. But the question is: if user numbers grow, will Cursor's costs skyrocket too? Will they have to raise prices then?

Plus, GitHub Copilot is only $10 a month and has Microsoft and GitHub's ecosystem backing it. From a pure cost-benefit perspective, Cursor is in a bit of an awkward position.

Intense Competition: Big Tech is Going All In

What worries me even more is the competitive landscape. All the major tech companies are now pushing hard on AI programming tools:

Anthropic: Claude was already one of the models Cursor uses, and now Anthropic has launched its own terminal AI tools, directly competing with Cursor for users.

Google: The Gemini CLI tool is free and open, offering 1000 requests per day, which is enough for many developers. And Google's code understanding capabilities are genuinely impressive.

Microsoft: GitHub Copilot has Microsoft and GitHub's ecosystem backing it, a huge user base, and they keep upgrading features.

The key issue is that Cursor is built on VS Code, which means Microsoft could integrate Cursor's features into VS Code at any time. When that happens, what reason would users have to pay separately for Cursor?

This reminds me of all those browsers built on Chrome that eventually got "killed off" by Chrome's own feature updates.

Privacy Concerns: Will My Code Be Collected?

Another issue that makes me a bit uncomfortable is privacy. Cursor's privacy policy mentions that unless you enable "privacy mode," they might collect our code snippets to improve the product.

While this is normal for AI companies, as a developer, I'm still a bit concerned. Especially when working on sensitive projects, I really don't want my code uploaded to the cloud.

Fortunately, Cursor provides a privacy mode, but enabling it comes with some feature limitations. It's a trade-off: convenience or privacy?

What is Cursor Doing About It?

That said, the Cursor team isn't just sitting around. I've noticed they're making efforts in several directions:

Developing their own models: Recently, Cursor has launched some unique features like "Tab-to-diff" that can't be achieved through simple third-party API calls. If they can create differentiation in specific scenarios, there's still a chance.

Expanding to broader platforms: They've launched a web version that lets users manage AI coding assistants in the browser. This is a good approach - not just being an editor, but becoming an AI platform for the entire development workflow.

Community building: Cursor is very active on GitHub, frequently interacting with users and collecting feedback. While their user base can't compare to big tech companies, user loyalty is quite high.

My Take

As an ordinary developer, I have mixed feelings about Cursor's future - both worried and hopeful.

I'm worried because in this highly competitive market, small companies really struggle to survive. Especially when facing giants like Microsoft and Google, the resources and ecosystems aren't even in the same league.

But I'm also hopeful that Cursor can stick around because it really has given me a different programming experience. Sometimes, small and beautiful products can innovate in ways that big companies can't.

Either way, this competition in AI programming tools is good news for us developers. Tools are getting smarter, and our work efficiency keeps improving.

Whether Cursor can survive the siege of giants depends on whether it can find its unique value proposition. I hope it succeeds, and I hope this market sees more excellent tools emerge.

After all, we're the ones who benefit in the end - those of us who write code.