OpenAI Halts GPT Model Supply to Cursor

OpenAI has announced it will stop directly supplying GPT models to Cursor, a coding tool acquired by SpaceX. OpenAI cited SpaceX's breach of terms and loss of trust as reasons, stating the decision aims to prevent leakage of its next-generation model technology.

The Code Factory channel commented, "Going forward, OpenAI will not directly supply GPT models to Cursor."

The relationship between Sam Altman and Elon Musk is already irreversibly broken, reaching a point where reconciliation is impossible. Musk has publicly expressed hostility towards OpenAI, including filing a lawsuit and criticizing its co-founders.

The Code Factory channel explained, "The relationship between Sam Altman and Elon Musk is already irreversibly broken."

In response, OpenAI demanded that the basis for the 5% calculation be disclosed, sparking a war of nerves between the two parties.

The Code Factory channel quoted the Cursor CEO's statement, "OpenAI models account for only about 5% of Cursor's user traffic."

Anthropic and SpaceX, which previously blocked each other's access and criticized one another, have now established a cooperative relationship where Anthropic extensively utilizes SpaceX's servers. Anthropic pays 1.25 billion dollars per month, approximately 1.7 trillion Korean Won, to lease SpaceX's servers.

The Code Factory channel reported, "Anthropic is paying 1.25 billion dollars per month, roughly 1.7 trillion Korean Won, to massively lease SpaceX's servers." Following the establishment of this cooperative relationship, Anthropic announced it would strengthen support for Cursor.

However, the BYOK (Bring Your Own Key) method, where users connect their own OpenAI API keys, will remain.

The Code Factory channel reported, "OpenAI set a deadline to terminate direct model supply to Cursor by November 12, 2026, starting on August 28, 2026." This is not an immediate, full model cut-off.

The BYOK method will not apply to some automation features, such as Cursor tab auto-completion, auto mode, cloud agent, and automated CLI SDK, which could reduce user convenience. Additionally, users who directly connect their API may face increased cost burdens.

The Code Factory channel pointed out, "BYOK, where users connect their own OpenAI API keys, doesn't apply to things like Cursor tab auto-completion, auto mode, cloud agent, or automated CLI SDK." This implies a reduction in integrated convenience features.

Until now, Cursor purchased OpenAI models in bulk and bundled their usage within Cursor subscriptions, offering them to users. This approach secured price competitiveness through bulk purchases, enabling models to be provided at a unit cost approximately 10-30% cheaper than general API fees.

The Code Factory channel explained, "Until now, Cursor bought OpenAI models in bulk and then bundled their usage within the Cursor subscription for users."

OpenAI is now shifting to directly selling its API without distributors. Conversely, Cursor is expected to change its structure to pass model costs to users to secure margins. Consequently, users may end up paying fees to both OpenAI and Cursor.

The Code Factory channel stated, "You would have to pay $100 directly to OpenAI," implying that users might face direct cost burdens.

OpenAI consequently invoked a change of control clause and expressed concerns about system security due to xAI's contracting practices.

The Code Factory channel emphasized, "Until SpaceX acquired Cursor, Cursor was a completely LLM-neutral entity," indicating that Cursor's loss of neutrality influenced this decision.

OpenAI raised concerns that this agreement could lead to the leakage of its data to competitor xAI.

The Code Factory channel explained, "Before the acquisition, Cursor had an agreement to provide specific data, datasets, prompts, specifications, and software code, in addition to personnel and know-how, in exchange for GPU clusters from SpaceX."

OpenAI has declared it will not provide future next-generation models, particularly 'Astra,' to Cursor. This aims to prevent the learning and data enhancement of competitor products and to secure strategic advantages in the future rather than forgo short-term revenue.

The Code Factory channel reported, "OpenAI has already declared that it will not provide future models, especially the next-generation model Astra, which will likely be released soon, to Cursor."

However, the basis for this 5% figure (users, requests, tokens, etc.) is ambiguous, and experts question its effectiveness.

The Code Factory channel mentioned, "Mike Treahl, the CEO of Cursor, is saying that OpenAI's models only handle about 5% of the total user traffic," adding controversy about the reliability of this claim.

In the enterprise LLM API market, Anthropic surpassed OpenAI with 40% to OpenAI's 27%, and in coding, Anthropic recorded an overwhelming 54% share.

The Code Factory channel presented market share data, stating, "As of May 2026, ChatGPT accounted for approximately 52.7% of visits to major generative AI websites."

Tony Wu, xAI co-founder, stated this would serve as an impetus to develop their own coding tools, and Elon Musk ridiculed Anthropic as a "human-hating company."

The Code Factory channel explained the situation at the time, "In January 2026, there was an incident everyone remembers: Anthropic blocked xAI developers' access to Claude."

The initial announced scale was over 300MW and more than 220,000 Nvidia GPUs, but the contract was later expanded to provide 325,000 GPUs.

The Code Factory channel reported, "In May 2026, exactly three months later, Anthropic signed an agreement to use SpaceX's Colossus Compute facilities." This contract is estimated to be worth 1.05 billion dollars per month, or 15 billion dollars annually.

Anthropic experienced severe server shortages as its usage and revenue increased 80-fold year-over-year in Q1 2026. Conversely, SpaceX had idle capacity in its existing Colossus 1 facility as it transitioned to Colossus 2.

The Code Factory channel mentioned, "Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, said that usage and revenue in Q1 2026 increased a whopping 80-fold compared to the previous year," explaining that the needs of both companies aligned. Officially, the contract stipulated that Anthropic's data ownership and intellectual property rights would be guaranteed.

As OpenAI announced the termination of its supply to Cursor, Anthropic co-founder Tom Brown issued a contrasting message. He stated that Cursor has been a trusted partner since the Claude 3.5 era and that Anthropic would increase compute supply for Claude models within Cursor.

The Code Factory channel reported, "When OpenAI announced the termination of supply to Cursor, Anthropic co-founder Tom Brown issued a completely opposite message. He stated that Cursor has been a trusted partner since the Claude 3.5 era and that they would increase compute supply for Claude models within Cursor." This demonstrates Anthropic's strategy to utilize the platform ecosystem, unlike OpenAI.

Concerns were raised that companies owning foundation models could wield excessive power when their influence becomes strong. This highlights how a monopolistic position can harm users and emphasizes the need for model diversity and a competitive environment.

The Code Factory channel warned, "If a foundational model is owned, and that model becomes really influential, it could exert too much tyranny."