Replit picks OpenAI over Anthropic for Agent
Replit has made OpenAI the default for its Agent coding tool, pushing Claude to an option. CEO Amjad Masad cites cost, performance, and partnership.
Replit, the AI coding platform used by millions of developers, has switched the default model behind its Replit Agent from Anthropic's Claude to OpenAI. CEO and co-founder Amjad Masad announced the change on stage at TechCrunch Disrupt on October 15, 2026, in one of the most watched model shakeups in the AI coding tools market this year.
What changed for users
OpenAI is now the default provider for Replit Agent. If you never touched the model setting, your projects now run on OpenAI models, which Masad referred to as ChatGPT. "OpenAI is now our preferred partner for powering Replit Agent," he said. Claude is still there. Masad clarified that Replit remains model agnostic: users can still choose Anthropic's Claude or other supported models manually, and enterprise administrators can control which providers are approved.
Why Replit made the switch
Masad pointed to three reasons: cost, performance, and the strength of the partnership. On performance, he said OpenAI's Sol and Astra models consistently score better on Replit's public VBench benchmark for building vibe-coded applications from scratch. "I think ChatGPT is better now," Masad said on stage. "We publish a public benchmark as well, and consistently, Sol and Astra perform better on building vibe-coded applications from scratch." He also said the decision came down to economics and partnership quality, calling OpenAI a better partner "for now."
The Anthropic connection is not fully cut
The announcement sounded like a clean break at first. On stage, Masad said Replit was "no longer working with Anthropic." He later softened that, saying customers can still access Claude models, just not as the default. The shift still stings for Anthropic. Replit grew up running on Claude, and Masad said the company had until recently been a top-five customer of Anthropic's. Because most customers stick with the default, the change could sharply reduce what Replit spends with Anthropic.
Why it matters
Replit announced a partnership with OpenAI back in August, but nothing suggested Claude was losing the default spot. That partnership is reported to have helped Replit grow its revenue significantly. The move shows how fast the AI coding tools market can turn. Whoever sits behind the default button shapes which model millions of developers actually use every day. Replit has not disclosed the commercial terms of the new arrangement or a formal effective date.