When GitHub went down, Cursor launched a corresponding version of Origin

AI coding assistant service Cursor has launched Origin, a platform for hosting code and handling merge requests. Platform support is already available for paid Cursor users and was provided before GitHub experienced a major outage.

Image source: cursor.com

GitHub spent much of the day leading up to August 17 trying to overcome a massive failure, and by the time platform management took control of the situation, Cursor had released its own alternative. Support for the Origin platform is integrated directly into the editor and is available in an early beta version for all paid plan users on the same day – enterprise customers declined to participate in the test.

Every Origin repository has received full support for functionality in Pull Request tasks; you no longer need to exit the editor to perform this operation. Because code, pull requests, and AI agents are now in one place, users can ask Cursor questions about available repositories and get answers, as well as make changes or add new branches directly.

Origin is not yet positioned as a GitHub replacement. Cursor users can continue to use existing GitHub repositories, which are now synced instantly with Origin. Launched integrations with Vercel, Depot and Buildkite, as well as continuous integration (CI) systems, including existing GitHub Actions workflows. Such product launches are typically planned weeks in advance, so Origin’s announcement on the day of GitHub’s massive outage was more of a coincidence than a reaction.