Who is Aman Sanger? How the 25-year-old Indian-origin entrepreneur became one of the youngest billionaires after Elon Musk’s SpaceX acquired his AI startup Cursor for $60 billion

A few years ago, Aman Sanger was an MIT student exploring the possibilities of artificial intelligence. Today, the 25-year-old Indian-origin entrepreneur is at the centre of one of the biggest AI deals of the year after Elon Musk’s SpaceX agreed to acquire Anysphere, the company behind AI coding platform Cursor, in a deal valuing it at $60 billion.

The acquisition has turned Sanger and his three co-founders into some of the youngest billionaires in the technology industry. However, Cursor’s journey began much earlier, with four young engineers exploring how AI could become part of a programmer’s everyday workflow.

Who Is Aman Sanger?

Aman Sanger is one of the four co-founders of Anysphere, the company that developed Cursor. He studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he met fellow founders Michael Truell, Sualeh Asif and Arvid Lunnemark.


According to an Outlook Business report, Sanger comes from a family with Indian roots. His father, Arvind Sanger, is an IIT Bombay alumnus who later worked in the hedge-fund industry, while his mother, Shilpa Sanger, is an orthodontist and entrepreneur.

Before co-founding Anysphere, Sanger had worked at Bridgewater Associates and Google and had also pursued an AI consulting venture. He currently serves as the company’s chief operating officer (COO).

How Did Aman Sanger And His Co-Founders Build Cursor?

Anysphere was founded in 2022 by Sanger, Asif, Truell and Lunnemark. Their early work explored different applications of AI, including computer-aided design, before they turned their attention to software development.

The founders focused on a simple problem: programmers often had to switch between their code editor and separate AI chatbots. They wanted to bring AI directly into the coding environment.

That idea eventually became Cursor.

Unlike traditional coding assistants that primarily suggest lines or snippets of code, Cursor is designed to work with larger sections of a developer’s codebase. It can generate and modify code, identify bugs and handle more complex programming tasks based on natural-language instructions.

The platform also became associated with the rise of “vibe coding”, where users describe what they want in ordinary language and rely on AI to handle much of the coding process.

What Makes Cursor Different?

Cursor combines AI capabilities with the coding environment itself, allowing developers to interact with their codebase using natural-language instructions.

Its rapid growth came as advances in large language models began changing how software developers approached coding. The founders saw software development as one of the most practical areas where AI could have a major impact.

Why Did SpaceX Acquire Cursor?

SpaceX had already been working with Cursor before the acquisition. In April 2026, the two companies announced a broader collaboration that included an option for SpaceX to acquire Cursor for $60 billion or pursue a $10-billion partnership if the acquisition did not proceed.

SpaceX ultimately chose the acquisition.

The transaction will make Anysphere a wholly owned subsidiary of SpaceX. According to the US Securities and Exchange Commission filing cited by Outlook Business, Cursor shareholders will receive SpaceX Class A stock based on the company’s $60-billion implied equity value.

The acquisition also fits into Elon Musk’s wider AI ambitions. SpaceX and Cursor had been working on an AI model expected to be used across Cursor and Grok, the AI chatbot developed by Musk’s xAI.

The deal therefore gives Musk’s broader AI ecosystem access to an established product used by software developers, along with the team behind it.

How Much Is Aman Sanger Worth After The $60 Billion Deal?

The acquisition has significantly increased the estimated value of the Cursor founders’ holdings.

According to Forbes, Sanger, Sualeh Asif, Michael Truell and Arvid Lunnemark each held approximately 4.5% of Anysphere. Based on the $60-billion valuation, each founder’s stake is estimated to be worth around $2.7 billion.

Major investors in Anysphere, including Andreessen Horowitz and Thrive Capital, are also expected to benefit from the transaction.

The company had previously raised $2.3 billion in a major funding round, reaching a valuation of around $29.3 billion, before its value climbed further amid growing demand for AI-powered coding tools.

From MIT Student To Young Billionaire

Sanger’s journey from an MIT student experimenting with AI to a key figure in a $60-billion acquisition highlights the rapid growth of AI-powered software development.

Anysphere was founded only in 2022, but Cursor quickly expanded its user base and attracted major companies. According to Outlook Business, the platform was being used by engineering teams at companies including Nvidia, Adobe, Uber, Shopify and PayPal, while the company said its platform was used across 64% of Fortune 500 companies.

[With TOI inputs]