Anthropic Co-founder on Why They Won't Sell Claude to OpenAI

Anthropic Restricts Windsurf's Access to Claude AI Models

Jared Kaplan, co-founder and Chief Science Officer at Anthropic, revealed that his company limited Windsurf’s direct access to its Claude AI models. This decision was largely influenced by circulating reports suggesting that OpenAI, a major competitor, is in the process of acquiring the AI coding assistant.

Strategic Alignment with Future Customers

During an interview at TC Sessions: AI 2025, Kaplan explained that Anthropic’s primary goal is to support customers committed to a long-term relationship with the company. He stated, “We really are just trying to enable our customers who are going to sustainably be working with us in the future.”

Kaplan further emphasized the incongruity of providing Claude access to OpenAI, stating, “I think it would be odd for us to be selling Claude to OpenAI.”

Impact on Windsurf and its Users

This action follows recent reports from Bloomberg indicating OpenAI’s potential acquisition of Windsurf for $3 billion. Windsurf confirmed that Anthropic had revoked its direct access to Claude 3.5 Sonnet and Claude 3.7 Sonnet, popular AI models for coding tasks.

Consequently, Windsurf was compelled to seek alternative computing providers on short notice. The startup expressed its disappointment with Anthropic’s decision, acknowledging the potential for temporary disruptions for users accessing Claude through its platform.

Neither Windsurf nor an OpenAI spokesperson offered immediate comments on Kaplan’s statements. The acquisition rumors remain unconfirmed by either company.

Computing Capacity and Lasting Partnerships

According to Kaplan, a key factor in Anthropic’s decision is the current limitation in computing resources. The company intends to prioritize allocating these resources to what he described as “lasting partnerships.”

However, Anthropic anticipates a significant increase in model availability for users and developers in the coming months. This expansion is fueled by the recent activation of a substantial new computing cluster provided by Amazon, which is undergoing continuous scaling.

Collaboration with Other AI Coding Tools

As Anthropic distances itself from Windsurf, Kaplan highlighted ongoing collaborations with other companies developing AI coding tools, specifically mentioning Cursor. He expressed Anthropic’s expectation of a prolonged working relationship with Cursor.

Kaplan dismissed the notion of competition with companies like Cursor, which are independently developing their own AI models.

Shift Towards Agentic Coding Products

Anthropic is increasingly concentrating its efforts on developing agentic coding products, such as Claude Code, rather than focusing on AI chatbot experiences. Kaplan believes the chatbot paradigm is inherently limited by its static nature.

He posited that AI agents will ultimately prove more beneficial to users than traditional chatbots, particularly in the long term. This contrasts with the competitive landscape where OpenAI, Google, and Meta are vying for dominance in the AI chatbot market.