SpaceX to Buy Cursor: Elon Musk to Buy AI Coding Startup Anysphere for $60 Billion in Strategic AI Deal Aimed at Challenging Rivals

Mumbai, June 17: Elon Musk’s SpaceX has agreed to buy Anysphere, the firm behind the popular AI coding assistant Cursor, in a $60 billion all-stock deal as the rocket builder seeks to strengthen its position in the fast-growing market for enterprise AI software.  

The deal gives SpaceX and its AI unit xAI a stronger foothold in AI-powered coding tools, one of the earliest areas where generative AI has gained significant commercial traction. Cursor has come out as a leading coding assistant among developers, competing with rivals such as OpenAI and Anthropic. It has grown rapidly despite having fewer compute resources than larger competitors.  

Market Reaction 

SpaceX, which saw a blockbuster Nasdaq debut that pushed the company’s valuation above $2 trillion, overtook Amazon in market value on Tuesday after its shares climbed 4.8% to close at $201.80, valuing Elon Musk’s company at about $2.655 trillion. That places SpaceX roughly $10 billion ahead of Amazon, previously the fifth-most valuable U.S.-listed company, and nearly $800 billion above its valuation at the time of its record IPO last week.

Why SpaceX Wants Cursor 

SpaceX had been evaluating Anysphere for months and had previously disclosed an option to either acquire the company or enter into a strategic partnership. The acquisition gives xAI access to valuable developer data generated through Cursor, including coding requests and software design decisions, which can be used to improve AI models such as Grok and other coding-focused tools.  

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The company said it plans to launch new AI products integrating Cursor’s capabilities with xAI’s technology, including enhancements to Grok Build, its AI coding agent. Analysts said the transaction could help SpaceX narrow the gap with AI leaders that have dominated the developer ecosystem.  

Cursor’s Rapid Rise 

Founded in 2022, Anysphere has become one of Silicon Valley’s fastest-growing AI startups. Earlier this month the company was generating roughly $2.6 billion in annualised enterprise revenue and had attracted backing from prominent investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Thrive Capital, Nvidia and Google’s parent company Alphabet.  

The startup had reportedly been exploring a fundraising round that would have valued it at about $50 billion, making SpaceX’s offer a premium to that valuation.  

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The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026. SpaceX said the acquisition will not be funded using proceeds from its recent IPO. The agreement also includes a $10 billion breakup fee under certain circumstances, underscoring the strategic importance of the deal.  

The startup has become a formidable challenger in the AI-assisted coding market, drawing developers with its automation capabilities. Yet, unlike larger rivals such as Anthropic and OpenAI, Cursor has struggled to secure the computing power needed to sustain its rapid growth. SpaceX said it would soon roll out an AI model integrated with Cursor, as well as Grok Build, xAI’s coding assistant, which the two firms have been jointly training for months. 

Source

• Publicly available data