GitHub will start charging Copilot users based on their actual AI usage
GitHub says it can no longer absorb “escalating inference cost” from its heaviest AI users.
TL;DR
- GitHub Copilot will move to a usage-based billing model on June 1.
- The change aims to align pricing with actual AI resource usage and make the service financially sustainable.
- Current broad "request" categories do not reflect the varying backend computing costs of different AI tasks.
- The new model will use "AI Credits" based on subscription payments, with overages charged per token consumption.
- API rates for different AI models will impact pricing, with more sophisticated models costing more.
- Simple AI suggestions like code completion will not consume AI credits.
- Copilot code reviews will incur additional costs via GitHub Actions minutes.
- A "preview bill" tool will be available to forecast charges under the new model.
- Recent reports indicate a significant increase in GitHub Copilot's weekly costs.
- Similar pricing adjustments are being observed with other AI services like Anthropic's Claude.