𝗖𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗿’𝘀 “𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁” 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗪𝗮𝘀 𝟱 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴

Cursor just crossed $500M ARR in 30 months, making it the fastest-growing SaaS in history. But if you think this was some viral lightning strike, think again.

The real story started five years ago with four MIT friends chasing a big idea. They weren’t aiming to build a better code editor. They wanted to reinvent how we build software entirely.

Their first project focused on 3D autocomplete for CAD, predicting engineers’ next moves. After months of grinding, they ran out of data and steam.

That’s when they returned to their core passion: programming. They ignored the skeptics, forked VS Code, and rebuilt from the ground up.

What followed? Relentless product obsession. No distractions. No shortcuts. Just day after day of shipping and refining.

As an early Cursor user, I had no idea about any of this. I just knew the product felt sharp and different. Reading this breakdown of their journey was fascinating and gave me a whole new appreciation for what they’ve built.

https://lnkd.in/gxP8FBN4

The lesson:
Cursor didn’t explode because they chased trends. They exploded because they:

▪️ Spent years learning and failing quietly
▪️ Ignored the easy path to build the right one
▪️ Obsessed over product quality
▪️ Hired with extreme discipline
▪️ Bet early on where the future was going

If you’re building: don’t be fooled by the headlines. Real breakthroughs take time. Cursor looks fast. But they just started early and stayed locked in.