Anthropic has cut off xAI’s access to its Claude AI models, a decision communicated in an internal email from cofounder Tony Wu to his team this week. As first reported by tech journalist Kylie Robison, Wu informed staff that many had likely noticed the lack of response from Claude models on Cursor, an AI-powered coding tool. He cited a new policy by Anthropic that prohibits access to its models for major competitors.
The restriction comes after reports that xAI employees were utilizing Claude models via Cursor to enhance their development processes. Wu acknowledged the impact of this decision on productivity, stating, “We will get a hit on productivity, but it rly pushes us to develop our own coding product/models. We’re at a time in which AI is now a critical technology for our own productivity.”
Anthropic’s action aligns with its commercial terms, which explicitly ban customers from leveraging its technology to create competing products or services, including training rival AI models. While Cursor is a recognized development platform, xAI’s usage of Claude through it seems to have prompted Anthropic to enforce these guidelines more strictly.
Nikita Bier, head of X, reacted to the ban on social media, stating, “Time to ban Anthropic from X.” This incident is part of a broader trend where Anthropic has previously restricted access to its models. In August 2022, the company withdrew OpenAI’s API access for similar competitive reasons. Furthermore, in June 2025, it limited access for the AI-assisted coding platform Windsurf after rumors emerged about a potential sale to OpenAI.
This latest decision from Anthropic coincides with its recent efforts to enhance security protocols against third-party tools attempting to mimic its Claude Code client. The company has reportedly tightened safeguards to prevent unauthorized access at lower costs than its standard API rates. Thariq Shihipar, who works on Claude Code at Anthropic, mentioned that some accounts had been banned for triggering its abuse detection systems, further indicating the company’s commitment to maintaining control over its intellectual property.
In a separate announcement, Elon Musk revealed that X will soon open-source its latest recommendation algorithm. Musk stated, “We will make the new X algorithm, including all code used to determine what organic and advertising posts are recommended to users, open source in 7 days.” He added that the open-sourcing process would occur every four weeks, accompanied by comprehensive developer notes to facilitate understanding of changes.
This action by X signifies a potential shift in the landscape of AI development and platform transparency, contrasting sharply with Anthropic’s recent restrictive measures. The contrasting approaches highlight the competitive tension within the rapidly evolving AI industry as companies navigate both innovation and market dominance.
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