Windsurf Wave 9: SWE-1 Family of Models
Windsurf Wave 9 introduces the SWE-1 family of models, designed to revolutionize the software engineering process by optimizing workflows beyond coding. Comprised of three distinct models—SWE-1, SWE-1-lite, and SWE-1-mini—this suite aims to accelerate software development by 99% through its focus on reasoning over incomplete states, long-running tasks, and diverse engineering surfaces.
SWE-1 Model
SWE-1 is the flagship model, achieving performance comparable to frontier models from leading foundation labs, while remaining cost-efficient. It is tailored for paid users during a promotional period at zero credits per prompt. Its capabilities include close-to-frontier tool-call reasoning, making it highly effective in collaborative coding environments like Cascade. Offline evaluations and blind production experiments demonstrate its ability to outperform mid-sized and open-weight alternatives in tasks requiring human-in-the-loop coding and end-to-end problem-solving.
SWE-1-lite and SWE-1-mini
SWE-1-lite, a mid-sized version, replaces Cascade Base and offers improved quality for unlimited use to all users, free or paid. SWE-1-mini, a compact and fast model, powers the Windsurf Tab passive experience, providing predictive action capabilities with minimal latency.
Flow Awareness and Shared Timeline
The Windsurf Editor’s flow awareness underpins the development of SWE-1 models. This system enables seamless collaboration between users and AI by maintaining a shared timeline of actions across multiple surfaces, including text editors, terminals, and browsers. Flow awareness ensures smooth transitions between human intervention and AI assistance, allowing the models to iteratively improve based on user feedback and actions.
Strategic Vision
The SWE-1 family reflects Windsurf’s ambition to exceed frontier model performance by leveraging insights from its user base and applications. The models are built to address the full complexity of software engineering, enabling tasks like testing, debugging, and incorporating user feedback. This iterative approach, combined with the shared timeline concept, positions Windsurf to create the most advanced software engineering models in the industry.
Windsurf Wave 9 marks the beginning of an aggressive investment in SWE model development, with the goal of delivering superior performance at lower costs to empower users in building larger and more scalable projects.
