Cursor AI has been rocking in the dev community for a while, and not without reason. With a fresh funding goal and a bunch of big-name users, it’s quickly becoming one of the hottest AI tools in tech.

Alright, let’s talk about our experience with running a proof of concept (PoC) and what we discovered after diving into it.

Introduction.

Here’s why Cursor AI is on everyone’s radar:

  • Valuation goals: The team behind Cursor is aiming for a valuation of around $10 billion.
  • Rapid growth: Built by Anysphere, one of the fastest-growing startups.
  • Impressive user base: Trusted by OpenAI, Instacart, Spotify, Uber, and others.
  • Skyrocketing revenue: From a $100M ARR in January to double that now.

Naturally, we were curious — could it really boost developer productivity? We decided to test Cursor AI ourselves, just enabled private mode (huge thumbs up). And together with a few developers we jumped in to evaluate it.

After a week, we gathered feedback — and here’s what stood out.

Cursor really feels like a knowledgeable junior teammate.

Key Takeaways.

1. Context Matters… A Lot…

Even with access to the entire codebase, specific requests are still critical. Uncertain prompts lead to generic results. Be clear, and Cursor delivers.

2. Code Search + Explanations.

Many devs pointed out how Sonnet 3.5 and 3.7 (Cursor’s models) shine when it comes to:

  • Explaining complex code logic
  • Locating the right code based on requirements
  • TAB suggestions sometimes read your mind!
  • Cursor really feels like a knowledgeable junior teammate.

3. Built-In Web Search & Custom Docs = Power Combo.

One of the most-loved features was the web search and ability to add your own documentation. For example:

  • We added Slack API and NestJS docs
  • Made it much easier to search and resolve issues

In one case, I even tracked down a bug in a Slack Deno CLI tool. Cursor parsed Deno logs, suggested commands, and pinpointed a fix I would’ve never discovered solo — a one-liner config tweak that solved it all.

Link: https://github.com/slackapi/deno-slack-sdk/issues/437

4. Developer Experience: VS Code vs JetBrains.

  • VS Code users: Absolute heaven. The cursor integrates well and enhances productivity.
  • JetBrains aficionados: Encountered some challenges, which led to a transition between different tools.

5. Agent Mode is a Time-Saver

Using Agent mode is especially helpful for:

  • Repetitive tasks: Changing hundreds of files to replace hex colors with design tokens was also possible.
  • Refactoring legacy code: We successfully refactored 50 files, organizing the code effectively and restoring its proper order.

6. Pricing: More Than Generous

Here’s how Cursor AI handles pricing:

  • You get 500 premium requests/month by default.
  • Claude Sonnet 3.7 = 1 premium request
  • Claude Sonnet 3.5 = just ⅓ of a request
  • Cursor-small and GPT-4o-mini are free, though they don’t fully support agent mode.

💡 Pro tip: Despite active usage, I couldn’t even reach the quota. So don’t worry about holding back — go ahead and use it to the maximum.

7. Bonus Features (and Some Caution)

MCP connection looked promising! Think of MCP as a plugin system for Cursor LLMs. But since MCP isn’t secure at the moment, I skipped it for now.

Just AI Meme

Final Thoughts.

Cursor AI is more than just a tool. When used thoughtfully, especially in agent mode or for documentation searches, it boosts productivity. It has the potential to transform your workflow.

Thanks for reading!

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