Fireship · 2026-04-06 · notable
Fireship: Cursor Ditches VS Code, But Not Everyone Is Happy
Cursor announced it is forking away from VS Code's extension model to build its own editor foundation, sparking debate about lock-in, compatibility, and the future of AI-native code editors.
Cursor is forking from VS Code — the AI editor wars just got more interesting.
What is it?
Fireship covers Cursor's decision to move away from VS Code as its foundation, creating an AI-native editor from scratch and leaving VS Code's extension ecosystem behind.
How does it work?
Cursor is building its own editor kernel optimized for AI-first workflows — faster agent loops, better context management, and tighter model integration than the VS Code plugin model allows.
Why does it matter?
The choice of editor foundation shapes what AI coding workflows are possible; this is the opening shot in a battle for the AI-native developer environment of 2027.
Try it
https://cursor.com