Anthropic Cuts Windsurf Access Amid OpenAI Acquisition Rumors

Anthropic, a leading AI research company, recently restricted Windsurf’s direct access to its Claude AI coding models. This move comes amid widespread rumors that OpenAI, Anthropic’s largest competitor, is acquiring Windsurf, an AI coding assistant startup.

Jared Kaplan, Anthropic’s co-founder and Chief Science Officer, explained that the company is focusing on enabling customers with whom it expects to maintain sustainable, long-term partnerships. He noted, “I think it would be odd for us to be selling Claude to OpenAI.”

The decision to cut Windsurf’s access to Claude 3.5 Sonnet and Claude 3.7 Sonnet—two popular AI models for coding—forces Windsurf to seek third-party computing providers on short notice. Windsurf expressed disappointment, warning of potential short-term instability for users relying on Claude through their platform.

Kaplan also highlighted that Anthropic currently faces computing constraints and prefers to allocate resources to lasting partnerships. However, the company is optimistic about expanding its model availability soon, thanks to a new, scalable computing cluster from Amazon.

Interestingly, while Anthropic is pulling back from Windsurf, it is strengthening collaborations with other AI coding tool developers like Cursor. Kaplan emphasized that Anthropic does not view companies developing their own AI models as competitors but as partners in advancing AI coding technology.

Moreover, Anthropic is shifting its strategic focus from AI chatbots toward agentic coding products such as Claude Code. Kaplan argued that traditional chatbot models are limited by their static nature, whereas agentic AI agents promise more dynamic and helpful user experiences in the long run.

This development highlights the evolving AI landscape where resource allocation, strategic partnerships, and product innovation are critical. Companies like Anthropic are navigating these challenges to maintain competitive advantage while fostering sustainable growth.