Show HN: Ungate – use Claude and GPT subscriptions in Cursor without API costs

Ungate, a new Cursor extension by developer orchidfiles, lets users run Claude, ChatGPT, and MiniMax subscriptions in Cursor without paying API token costs. The extension, installable via `cursor --install-extension orchidfiles.ungate`, uses OAuth for Claude and ChatGPT, API keys for MiniMax, and supports streaming, tool calls, vision, and reasoning tiers. It also fixes a Cursor bug that disables the OpenAI API Key setting by automatically re-enabling it.

A Cursor-first extension for using Claude, ChatGPT, and MiniMax subscriptions in Cursor instead of paying for API tokens. Ungate lets you use Claude, ChatGPT, and MiniMax in Cursor through account subscriptions instead of direct API token billing. Claude and ChatGPT authenticate via OAuth; MiniMax uses provider API credentials. Cursor allows a custom OpenAI Base URL. Ungate listens on that URL and translates requests to the target provider API, including streaming, tool calls, and vision where supported. The extension manages the tunnel that makes the proxy reachable to Cursor's backend and shows its settings in a Webview panel. From there you configure providers, copy the public proxy URL, and copy the proxy API key that Cursor uses to authenticate to your local proxy. The status bar item shows separate API and tunnel state. Hover it to inspect the current tunnel URL and use quick actions for opening the dashboard, restarting the tunnel, and copying the tunnel URL. Cursor also has a bug where OpenAI API Key turns itself off in settings every few hours. Ungate can keep it enabled automatically and lets you control this behavior from the status bar tooltip and the dashboard. sequenceDiagram participant U as Chat participant B as Cursor backend participant C as Cloudflare tunnel participant D as Ungate proxy participant P as Provider API U- B: Request B- C: Forward request C- D: Process request D- P: Provider call P-- D: Stream response D-- C: Process response C-- B: Forward response B-- U: Response - OpenAI-to-provider request translation - Streaming responses - Tool calls mapping - Image support - OAuth authentication via Claude or ChatGPT account - MiniMax API key authentication - MiniMax <think ...</think reasoning separation - Request analytics - Analytics split by provider: Claude, OpenAI, and MiniMax - Built-in web UI panel - Keeps OpenAI API Key enabled when Cursor turns it off on its own | Capability | Claude | OpenAI | MiniMax | |---|---|---|---| | Authentication | OAuth | OAuth | API key | | Streaming | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Tool calls | Yes | Yes | Yes | | Vision | Yes | No | Yes | | Reasoning tiers | Yes | No | No | | Analytics | Yes | Yes | Yes | - Cursor with custom OpenAI provider support enabled. - System Node.js installed on the machine. Ungate starts its local API through the system Node runtime. Supported versions: Node 22, 24, 26 Node 20 and 23 are not supported . - Outbound internet access for OAuth and provider APIs. - A reachable public tunnel URL because Cursor backend cannot call localhost . Install from the marketplace: cursor --install-extension orchidfiles.ungate Or search @id:orchidfiles.ungate in the Extensions panel. Install the extension, then open the dashboard by clicking the Ungate item in the status bar. Choose the provider you want to use and authenticate with it. For Claude and ChatGPT, sign in through OAuth. For MiniMax, enter your API key and choose a Base URL: Global , China , or Custom . - In the Tunnel section, click Start tunnel , then copy the public URL shown in the panel. - Paste it into Cursor Settings → Models → OpenAI Base URL . - Copy the proxy API key from the same panel and paste it into Cursor Settings → Models → OpenAI API Key . If Cursor turns OpenAI API Key off on its own, Ungate can turn it back on automatically. You can control this from the status bar tooltip and the dashboard. - In the Models section, copy the model IDs you want and add them as custom models in Cursor. - If you use MiniMax, add MiniMax-M2.7 as a custom model in Cursor. - Select one of your custom models in Cursor and start chatting. After setup, then send one test message from Cursor using a custom model ID. If Cursor turns OpenAI API Key off on its own, Ungate should turn it back on automatically. - Cursor built-in model IDs can bypass OpenAI Base URL and go directly to provider APIs. - Use only custom model IDs copied from Ungate Models in Cursor settings. - If Cursor still bypasses base URL, restart Cursor and re-check model selection. - OAuth and provider credentials are stored locally on your machine. - Request metadata for analytics is stored in the local SQLite database. - Tunnel URL and proxy API key are secrets and should be treated like credentials. - Anyone with both values can send requests through your proxy. - Rotate your proxy key from the dashboard when you suspect leakage. git clone https://github.com/orchidfiles/ungate.git cd ungate pnpm install pnpm run package:build cursor --install-extension "apps/extension/out/ungate.vsix" Run the build in watch mode in one step with Command Palette - Run Task - build:watch all . Or run it manually in the terminal: pnpm --filter @ungate/dev-kit build pnpm --filter @ungate/shared build:watch pnpm --filter @ungate/api build:watch pnpm --filter @ungate/web build:watch After the build, press F5 to test the extension in Cursor debug mode. You can also run the API separately from the extension on another port: cd apps/api use the default database: PORT=4784 node dist/main.js use a separate dev database: DB PATH=$HOME/.ungate/data-dev.db PORT=4784 node dist/main.js | Symptom | Check | Fix | |---|---|---| | Cursor ignores base URL | Selected model is built-in | Switch to custom model ID from Ungate Models | 401 from proxy | Cursor API key field | Paste proxy API key from Ungate dashboard | 404 or timeout through tunnel | Tunnel status in Ungate panel | Restart tunnel from dashboard | | OAuth session expired | Provider connection status | Reconnect provider in dashboard | | Model missing in Cursor | Custom model list in Cursor | Add model ID manually from Ungate Models | API never starts, native No prebuilt binary for ABI ... in logs | Node.js version | Install a supported Node version 22, 24, 26 | localhost does not work as OpenAI Base URL because Cursor calls the endpoint from its backend.- Tunnel is required for Cursor backend to reach your proxy. - Built-in provider model IDs can bypass custom base URL routing. - Provider switch flow: connect provider in Ungate, add its model ID in Cursor, then select that custom model. - Analytics data and API key is stored in local SQLite files under $HOME/.ungate/ . MIT Bug reports and feature requests: GitHub issues https://github.com/orchidfiles/ungate/issues Everything else: orchid@orchidfiles.com mailto:orchid@orchidfiles.com Made by the author of orchidfiles.com https://orchidfiles.com — essays from inside startups. If you found ungate useful, you'll probably enjoy the essays.