Cursor is the best AI code editor. Glue is the best codebase intelligence tool. Together, they create a workflow where you understand what to build before you start building it.
Here's the practical setup.
Cursor can index your codebase and use it for context. But its indexing is optimized for code completion, not for understanding. It knows what your code looks like. It doesn't know:
This is fine for simple tasks. For complex tickets, Cursor generates plausible but context-free suggestions.
Before opening Cursor, paste your ticket into Glue. Get:
Review Glue's build plan. It shows:
Now open Cursor with full context. You know exactly which files to modify, in what order, and what to watch out for. Cursor's AI suggestions are dramatically more useful because you're asking focused questions about specific files, not vague questions about unfamiliar code.
Before committing, check the blast radius from Step 1. Did you modify everything that needs updating? Are there downstream consumers you missed?
The workflow separates two different types of AI work:
Neither tool does the other's job well. Glue can't write code. Cursor can't map feature boundaries. Together, they cover the full development workflow.
Without this workflow:
With Glue + Cursor:
55% time reduction. Not from typing faster — from eliminating the understanding overhead.
The context-first workflow exists because of the Understanding Tax — the time wasted when Cursor generates code without codebase-level understanding.
For a similar integration guide, read How to Give Claude Code Full Project Context.
Glue is the pre-code intelligence layer that makes Cursor dramatically more effective. Understand first, generate second — that's the workflow that turns AI tools from autocomplete into genuine productivity multipliers.