Amazon staff rally behind Cursor

[UNITED STATES] Several Amazon employees have expressed strong interest in using Cursor, a popular AI-powered coding assistant, at work. Internal Slack messages reviewed by Business Insider show that an Amazon HR manager confirmed the company is actively working with Cursor's team to resolve "high priority security issues" before potentially rolling out the tool companywide. The HR representative signaled optimism, stating, "I'm optimistic this could become a reality at Amazon."

This potential adoption is striking given Amazon's typically cautious stance on external AI tools—especially when it has competing in-house products. The company already offers Q, its own AI assistant, and is developing an advanced coding tool codenamed Kiro. Still, employee feedback reveals that many prefer Cursor for its speed and usability. An internal Slack poll showed Cursor handily beating Windsurf—an AI tool recently acquired by OpenAI—in user preference.

Cursor's growing popularity reflects its broader industry momentum. The tool’s creator, Anysphere, recently raised $900 million at a $9 billion valuation and counts major tech firms like Stripe and Shopify among its customers. Even Amazon CEO Andy Jassy highlighted Cursor during a recent earnings call, describing it as emblematic of the "explosion of coding agents."

Implications

For Amazon, formally integrating Cursor could mark a shift toward a more open approach in its generative AI strategy. While the company has historically emphasized internal tools, the strong internal demand for Cursor—and its perceived superiority—may pressure Amazon to prioritize productivity over internal product loyalty.

If deployed, Cursor could significantly enhance engineering workflows across Amazon, especially given complaints about the slowness of the existing Q assistant. Developers praising Cursor’s "instantaneous" response time over Q’s “minutes” lag could signal rising internal dissatisfaction with homegrown solutions, affecting morale and retention in tech teams.

More broadly, Cursor's momentum could reshape enterprise AI tool procurement. Companies may increasingly opt for third-party solutions if they prove meaningfully better, even in the presence of internal offerings. That trend could benefit nimble startups like Anysphere while posing strategic dilemmas for tech giants juggling innovation, control, and employee preferences.

What we think

Cursor’s rise at Amazon represents a quiet but telling moment in the evolution of enterprise AI tooling. It suggests that even the largest tech firms may be forced to reckon with employee-led preferences when it comes to productivity software. The fact that a Slack channel of 1,500 users sparked meaningful corporate engagement speaks to a bottom-up demand dynamic rarely seen in tightly controlled enterprise IT.

Amazon’s willingness to consider Cursor—despite having multiple internal competitors—could reflect a maturing view of the AI ecosystem. Rather than walling off third-party tools, Amazon may now recognize that superior user experience and speed can outweigh internal rivalry. It’s also a signal to the broader industry that best-in-class functionality still matters, even in the era of mega-platform consolidation.

If the Cursor deal moves forward, it may become a case study in how internal employee advocacy can influence billion-dollar corporate AI strategy. At the very least, it underscores how quickly AI tooling preferences are forming—and shifting—in the hands of developers themselves.