OpenAI hires team behind Xcode AI tool Alex

Ken Metral

05 Sep 2025 — 1 min read

Credit: Alex, Inc./OpenAI

OpenAI is continuing its streak of acqui-hires, bringing the team behind Alex, a developer tool that integrated AI models into Apple’s Xcode suite, into its Codex division. Codex is the group within OpenAI responsible for building the company’s AI-powered coding assistant.

Alex’s founder, Daniel Edrisian, confirmed the move in a post on X, noting that while the startup is winding down, existing users will continue to have access to the tool. The app will no longer be available for download after October 1, and the company has no plans to roll out new features, though maintenance will continue for as long as there are active users.

“When we started out, Xcode had no AI. Building a ‘Cursor for Xcode’ sounded crazy, but we managed to do it anyway. And, over time, we built the best coding agent for iOS & macOS apps,” Edrisian wrote.

Alex was founded in 2024 and participated in Y Combinator’s accelerator program. The company’s mission was to give iOS and macOS developers a seamless way to use AI models within Apple’s Xcode. However, Apple updated Xcode earlier this year to natively support ChatGPT and other AI models, narrowing the differentiation that Alex offered. Edrisian didn’t explicitly say if that was a factor in the team’s decision to join OpenAI.

According to Y Combinator’s listing, Alex’s team was just three people. It remains unclear if all members are heading to OpenAI.

This latest move highlights OpenAI’s strategy of absorbing small, high-talent teams rather than acquiring entire companies outright. Just days ago, the company announced it was acquiring product testing startup Statsig for $1.1 billion, marking one of its biggest deals yet.

For Alex users, the transition is bittersweet: while the app won’t be evolving further, the expertise behind it is now set to play a role in shaping OpenAI’s future coding tools — a signal that acqui-hires, especially in the AI sector, are becoming a standard playbook for tech giants looking to secure top talent quickly.

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