This Startup Went From $0 to $100M ARR in 12 Months

How AI coding startup Cursor surpassed OpenAI and others to reach $100M ARR in just 12 months — a compelling case study in hypergrowth.

Hi, it’s Andreas. I’m not only back from my vacation in Thailand, but also back with Growth, my newsletter that dives deep into the funnels and growth tactics of today’s top startups.

Today, we’re diving into a startup with probably the most impressive growth journey we’ve covered so far—one that even outperformed OpenAI’s explosive rise.

So, let’s jump in.

---

If you're interested in startup growth and have kept your eyes open over the past few months, you've probably seen this graphic:

Source: Sacra

This shows the impressive growth numbers of several popular SaaS startups - all in comparison to the tool we're covering here:

Cursor.

Cursor is a code editor with built-in AI features, like an AI chat. You know, those (for us non-techies) weird-looking control centers where you type in lines of code and - magically - a full product comes out.

That means, with Cursor, developers now have an AI sparring partner - one they can ask questions while coding, that helps find bugs and assists in coding at light speed.

But not only does this sound fascinating (at least to me), but what's even more fascinating is that the startup is hitting $100M ARR in just 12 months. IN. JUST. 12. MONTHS.

With zero marketing budget.

That alone is reason enough to break it down. But while many articles only scratched the surface of its growth story - and left me unsatisfied after reading - I had to take a closer look myself.

So, ladies and gentlemen, buckle up — we’re diving deep.