rewrite this title and make it good for SEOThe exclusivity on OpenAI’s $3 billion acquisition for AI coding startup Windsurf has expired

The expiration of the exclusivity period means that Windsurf is free to explore other options, roughly two months after OpenAI made the offer. It was not immediately clear if Windsurf is shopping the offer around or talking to other potential suitors.

It’s also not clear if OpenAI still hopes to eventually complete the transaction with Windsurf. Windsurf could not immediately be reached for comment.

AI coding startups, which use generative AI to assist programmers in writing code, have become one of the hottest categories in tech. Microsoft’s GitHub Copilot, built on OpenAI’s technology, has gained widespread adoption. In addition, Cursor, a startup backed by VCs like Thrive Capital, Accel, and Andreessen Horowitz, recently raised a $900 million Series C, hitting a $9 billion valuation.

Prior to making its bid for Windsurf, OpenAI had approached Anysphere about acquiring Cursor—but these discussions fell through as the startup wasn’t interested in being bought “even by OpenAI,” according to a report in TechCrunch.

Founded in 2021 by MIT classmates, and initially called Codeium, the startup changed its name to Windsurf in April, shortly before the OpenAI offer. The startup’s investors include Founders Fund, General Catalyst, Greenoaks and Kleiner Perkins. TechCrunch reported in February that Windsurf was raising a funding round at a $2.85 billion valuation.