Splitting AI Tools: Cursor 3 + GPT-5.4 for Code, Claude for Learning

Melvin Vivas · X post · 2026-04-09 · Open on X

Topics: AI Dev Tools & Productivity · Level: beginner

Summary

The creator downgraded from Claude Max to Claude Pro. He now codes mostly in Cursor 3 (Glass) with GPT-5.4 and keeps Claude for brainstorming and learning. The post shows one way to split work across AI subscriptions to save money.

Key points

• He moved from Claude Max to the cheaper Claude Pro plan.
• Most coding now happens in Cursor 3 (Glass) with GPT-5.4.
• He still uses Claude for brainstorming and learning new topics.
• Lesson: match each tool to the task instead of paying for one top-tier plan.

Resources mentioned

• Cursor · tool · x.com · free · recommended by both Bashiri Smith & Melvin Vivas
  AI-native code editor (VS Code with AI built in).
  Also in: GLM 5.3 and GLM 5.3 Flash now in Cursor (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Grok Bot Can Now Hand Off Coding Tasks to Cursor (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Why Plan Mode Still Matters in AI Coding Assistants (Codex, Claude, Cursor) (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Why Plan Mode Still Matters in AI Coding Agents (Codex, Claude, Cursor) (Melvin Vivas on X · notes) and 121 more
• GPT-5.4 · tool · openai.com · paid
  OpenAI frontier model (Thinking and Pro variants) for reasoning, coding and agents.
  Also in: Opinion: GPT-5.4 in Cursor 3 Replaces Opus for Coding (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Creator's Coding Setup: Cursor 3 with GPT 5.4 (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Open-Source GLM-5.1 Beats GPT-5.4 on SWE-Bench Pro (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), GPT-5.4 Is Available in OpenAI Codex (Melvin Vivas on X · notes) and 2 more
• Claude Opus 5.5 · tool · claude.ai · paid · open in a browser to verify · recommended by both Bashiri Smith & Melvin Vivas
  Anthropic's AI assistant, used throughout the guide to tailor resumes, add live roles to the tracker, match connections to target companies and find hiring managers.
  Also in: Generating a Repo Promo Video with a Claude Skill on Sonnet 5.5 vs Opus 5.5 (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Comparing Coding Models on the Same Task in Devin iOS (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), Customizing Your Coding Setup with Pi Coding Agent Extensions (Melvin Vivas on X · notes), AI Engineer Roadmap Overview: From ML Foundations to RAG, Agents & Ops (Bashiri Smith on Facebook · notes) and 53 more