In April 2023, FTX's estate sold a 5% stake in AI coding startup Cursor for $200,000, a valuation that has skyrocketed to approximately $3 billion after SpaceX's $60 billion acquisition agreement. This massive increase in value has brought attention to the significant losses incurred by FTX's creditors due to the estate's decision to liquidate assets during the bankruptcy process. The deal is part of Elon Musk's efforts to enhance SpaceX's AI capabilities, particularly in the area of AI coding tools. The acquisition is expected to take place later this year, with SpaceX having the option to pay $10 billion if the full acquisition does not proceed.
The crypto community is abuzz with the news, particularly given the involvement of Alameda Research, which had invested $200,000 in Anysphere, the company behind Cursor, in April 2022. This investment, which represented roughly 5% of the company at a $4 million valuation, was sold by the FTX estate for the same amount a year later, resulting in a substantial loss of potential revenue for creditors. The significant disparity between the sale price and the current valuation has sparked debate about the timing and handling of the asset sale, with some arguing that the estate's decision to liquidate assets too quickly may have destroyed billions of dollars in value.
Sam Bankman-Fried, currently serving a 25-year federal sentence, has been vocal about his concerns regarding the estate's asset management, suggesting that customers could have received greater compensation if the process had been handled differently. The situation has also drawn attention to the remarkable growth trajectory of Cursor, which launched its AI coding product in early 2023 and has since achieved one of the steepest valuations in software startup history. While FTX customers have been repaid in full, the missed opportunity represented by the Cursor stake has highlighted the potential consequences of forced asset sales during bankruptcy proceedings.