Replit makes OpenAI its default model, keeps Claude as option

Key takeaways

• OpenAI models now power the default experience in Replit Agent, the AI coding assistant inside Replit, according to CEO Amjad Masad and TechCrunch.
• Anthropic's Claude models have not been removed: paying Core and Pro users can still pick them manually in Power or Max mode.
• The Information reported on 24 October that Replit moved most of its AI spending to OpenAI under a contract worth more than $100 million a year at a discount of over 30%. Replit, OpenAI and Anthropic have not confirmed those terms publicly.
• Masad first said on stage that Replit was "no longer working with Anthropic," then narrowed that to OpenAI being the "preferred partner" while Replit "remains model agnostic."
• The episode shows how hard OpenAI and Anthropic are competing on price for coding-agent workloads, one of the biggest sources of AI API revenue.

Replit has switched Replit Agent, its AI coding assistant, to an OpenAI default model, according to CEO Amjad Masad and TechCrunch. Anthropic's Claude models remain available: paying Core and Pro users can still pick them manually in Power or Max mode.

What changed in Replit's default model

Replit Agent writes, runs and fixes code from plain-language prompts. Until recently it relied mostly on Anthropic's Claude models, and Masad told TechCrunch that Replit had been "a top-five customer of Anthropic's" until recently.

That has now changed. After Masad's on-stage remarks, Replit told TechCrunch that customers can still use Anthropic models but that OpenAI's models are now the default. TechCrunch noted that most users never change the default model. That means the switch could sharply cut how much Replit spends with Anthropic, even though Claude stays in the product.

Replit's own documentation describes how model choice works. In Free Mode, Replit always picks the model automatically through what it calls intelligent model routing. Builders on the Core and Pro plans can open Agent Mode, choose Power or Max, and then pick a model under "Primary model." The documentation shows Anthropic and OpenAI among the providers and uses OpenAI's GPT-5.6 Sol as its example. Replit also says the model list inside the product is the definitive list for each account, because availability varies.

How to keep using Claude in Replit Agent

Based on Replit's documentation, paying users who prefer Claude can still choose it:

1. Open the prompt box and switch to Agent Mode.
2. Choose Power or Max mode. Manual model choice is not available in Free Mode.
3. Under Primary model, select one of the Claude models listed for your account.
4. Optionally adjust the Effort setting. Replit warns that higher effort can take longer and cost more.

What The Information reported about the deal

The Information, a subscription tech publication, reported on 24 October that Replit had recently moved most of its AI spending from Anthropic to OpenAI. The report's headline and summaries were carried by Techmeme and AI Weekly. According to those accounts:

• OpenAI gave Replit a discount of more than 30%.
• The contract is worth more than $100 million a year.
• Anthropic had declined to extend Replit's earlier discount unless Replit committed to spend more.

The same report, as summarised by AI Weekly, cited data from payroll and HR software company Rippling. Since May, Anthropic's share of Rippling's coding work reportedly fell from 57% to 18%, while OpenAI's rose from 16% to 52%. Techmeme's excerpt of the story opens with the line "OpenAI's efforts to undercut Anthropic on price are producing some results."

Bullquill could not read the full paywalled article. Replit, OpenAI and Anthropic have not publicly confirmed the contract value, the discount or the Rippling figures. Read them as reported figures, not company disclosures.

Confirmed facts vs reported claims

What Amjad Masad said, and how he clarified it

On stage at TechCrunch Disrupt, Masad said Replit was no longer working with Anthropic. He gave three reasons. "It was a decision based on both cost, partnership, and performance," he said. He added: "I think ChatGPT is better now." He also said Replit's internal and public benchmarks show OpenAI's models doing better at building "vibe-coded" applications from scratch.

TechCrunch reported that people familiar with the relationship disputed that the Anthropic partnership had ended, and one said it was still in place. The outlet also noted that a late-September Replit blog post had named Claude models running in Replit Agent's production environment.

Masad then softened his wording in comments to TechCrunch. "Replit remains model agnostic," he said, adding that users can choose Claude or other supported models. He called OpenAI Replit's "preferred partner for powering Replit Agent," citing performance, economics and the partnership. TechCrunch updated its story and headline to reflect the clarification. Anthropic did not give an on-record response in TechCrunch's reporting.

The August OpenAI partnership

The move builds on a partnership announced in August. On 19 August, Crypto Briefing reported that Replit had launched Free Mode, built on OpenAI's GPT-5.6 Luna, the cheapest tier of OpenAI's GPT-5.6 family. Free Mode is available on the $20-a-month Core and $100-a-month Pro plans and covers chat, brainstorming and simple agent tasks without using a subscriber's AI credits. Before a request moves beyond Free Mode, Replit warns the user that it will switch to paid usage.

Why coding agents are the price battleground

Coding assistants use large numbers of tokens. Each agent run can involve many model calls to plan, edit files, run tests and fix errors. At Replit's scale, small changes in price per token turn into large sums. That is why a reported discount of over 30% matters more here than a benchmark lead of a few points.

The timing also matters. Both labs are under financial pressure. Anthropic's IPO documents showed heavy losses, as Bullquill reported in its analysis of Anthropic's $80.7bn first-half loss. OpenAI is meanwhile raising new capital at a reported $1.25 trillion valuation. Crypto Briefing, citing commentary from The Information's Amir Efrati, noted on 24 October that OpenAI's discounting could weigh on its own finances. Discounts can win large customers, but they also squeeze margins.

OpenAI has also been widening where developers can reach its models, including bringing its models and Codex to Google Cloud. That makes it easier for platforms to route traffic away from a single supplier.

What it means

For Replit users: Not much changes on the surface. New projects will mostly run on OpenAI models unless you change the setting. Paying users who prefer Claude can still pick it in Power or Max mode. Results, speed and credit use may differ between models, so check output quality on your own projects instead of relying on vendor benchmarks.

For teams building on LLM APIs: Replit's move shows that large customers can now play model providers against each other. Abstracting the model layer, so you can switch providers or route tasks by cost, is becoming standard practice. Our guide to cutting LLM API costs with caching, batching and model routing covers the techniques involved.

For Anthropic and OpenAI: If the reported figures are accurate, OpenAI is using price to take coding workloads, an area where Claude has been strong. Anthropic appears to have chosen margin over volume, at least in Replit's case. Neither company has commented publicly on the reported terms, and Replit's public position is that it remains model agnostic.

What is still unknown: the confirmed value and length of the OpenAI contract, how much Anthropic usage remains on Replit, and whether other coding platforms will follow.

Sources

• TechCrunch: Replit CEO says the company is no longer working with Anthropic (updated with clarification)
• Yahoo Finance (TechCrunch syndication): Replit no longer working with Anthropic
• The Information: Anthropic's Margin is OpenAI's Opportunity (paywalled)
• Techmeme, 24 October 2026: summary of The Information's report
• AI Weekly: Replit shifts $100M+ AI spend to OpenAI after 30% price cut
• Replit Docs: Model selector
• Crypto Briefing: Replit debuts Free Mode powered by OpenAI's GPT-5.6 Luna
• Crypto Briefing: OpenAI faces financial scrutiny amid reduced valuation and discounting strategy