As a developer, I'm always on the lookout for tools that can make my coding experience more efficient and enjoyable. And in this new world of Artificial Intelligence, the tech industry is making insane breakthroughs. One such product that's changing the coding game is Cursor AI. It's a new IDE which uses AI and basically does everything for you.
Let's explore how it works.
What is Cursor AI?
Cursor AI is an AI-powered code editor built as a fork of Visual Studio Code. It's designed to enhance your coding experience by providing intelligent code suggestions, natural language editing capabilities, and a deep understanding of your entire codebase.
Unlike traditional code editors, it integrates advanced AI models like GPT-4o, Claude 3.5 Sonnet, and their custom cursor-small model to provide context-aware suggestions and automate repetitive coding tasks. But what makes it truly unique is how deeply these AI models are woven into the coding experience. Rather than just offering isolated suggestions, Cursor indexes and understands your entire project, allowing it to provide contextually relevant assistance tailored to your specific codebase.
Key Features
1. Tab Completion
Cursor's tab completion is impressively intelligent. It can:
- Suggest multiple lines of code at once
- Auto-import symbols in TypeScript and Python files
- Predict your next cursor position for seamless navigation
As an example, I just wrote a comment (which was also autocompleted btw) to write a program to print all fibonacci numbers and this is how fast it was done:
Did you see how amazing it is, it's my favorite feature from Cursor.
2. Chat with AI
It includes a powerful chat interface (accessible with Ctrl+L) that allows you to:
- Ask questions about your code
- Get explanations for complex functions
- Reference specific parts of your codebase with @ symbols
- Include images for visual context
As you can see above, in the chat interface, there are three modes: Agent, Ask, and Edit.
Agent Mode: Has access to your entire codebase, writes into the files on its own, it's literally like a software engineer on your tips.
Ask Mode: Has access to the context you give it, suggests changes in an intelligent manner.
Edit Mode: Edit mode is similar to Agent mode, but only has access to the context you give it.
You can select any of these modes, with almost all majorly used models and do anything you want with it. People have built whole apps using just Cursor and its AI and are making money with it. It's absolutely insane!
3. Code Generation and Editing
With Ctrl+K, you can:
- Generate new code based on natural language descriptions
- Edit existing code by describing the changes you want
- Create entire functions or classes with simple prompts
This feature allows you to make quick changes inline and comes in handy whenever you're dealing with small edits. Even here you can use use multiple models which is also very helpful.
4. Terminal Commands
Cursor can help with terminal commands too:
- Use Ctrl+K in the terminal to generate commands from natural language
- Execute complex operations without remembering syntax
- Automate repetitive terminal tasks
You can use this Ctrl + K mode to also run in the terminal directly. This is very helpful when you forget some terminal commands and want to quickly remember them.
5. Customization with Cursor Rules
You can customize Cursor's behavior using .cursorrules files:
- Define project-specific instructions for the AI
- Set coding style preferences
- Guide the AI to follow your team's best practices
// Example .cursorrules file
Always use strict types instead of 'any' in TypeScript.
Prefer functional programming paradigms over imperative approaches.
Ensure any React components are stateless unless explicitly necessary.
You can save this file in your project directory and cursor will use this information for its outputs.
Getting Started
Download and Install: Visit cursor.com to download the application for your operating system (Windows, macOS, or Linux).
Set Up Your Workspace: Open Cursor and create or open a project. The interface will feel familiar if you've used VS Code before.
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Try the Key Features:
- Use Tab for code completion
- Press Ctrl+L to open the chat interface
- Use Ctrl+K to generate or edit code
- Try Ctrl+I for multi-file operations
Customize Your Experience: Create a
.cursorrulesfile in your project root to customize the AI's behavior.
Privacy and Security
Cursor takes privacy seriously:
- Enable Privacy Mode to ensure your code is never stored remotely
- SOC 2 certified for security compliance
- Option to use local models for sensitive projects
All these rules can be configured in the Settings and you will also be prompted to choose a Privacy mode when you first download Cursor.
Conclusion
Cursor AI represents a significant step forward in AI-assisted coding. Its ability to understand your entire codebase, generate complex code structures, and adapt to your coding style makes it a powerful tool for developers of all skill levels.
While it's not perfect—sometimes generating verbose code or taking longer than expected to process complex requests—the benefits far outweigh these minor issues. As AI technology continues to evolve, tools like Cursor will likely become an essential part of every developer's toolkit.
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