Why GitHub matters
GitHub launched the Copilot coding agent on May 19, 2025, letting developers assign issues to an agent that opens pull requests. At GitHub Universe on October 28, 2025 it announced Agent HQ, which runs agents from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Cognition, and xAI under one Copilot subscription. Microsoft reported about 4.7 million paid Copilot subscribers on January 28, 2026, and GitHub shipped a desktop Copilot app for directing multiple agents in June 2026.
The numberAbout 4.7 million paid GitHub Copilot subscribers, up roughly 75% year over year (Microsoft earnings, Jan 28, 2026)
On The Agentic 80
Listed under Coding agents. Agents that write, test, and ship software.
On The All Things AI 100
Listed under Coding and app building. Tools that write software, for developers and for people who never learned to code.
Quick answers
- What does GitHub do?
- Code hosting platform whose Copilot line includes a coding agent and Agent HQ for running third-party agents. GitHub launched the Copilot coding agent on May 19, 2025, letting developers assign issues to an agent that opens pull requests.
- What AI capabilities does GitHub offer?
- GitHub offers GitHub Copilot for code completion, chat, and review help in supported editors and on GitHub. The Copilot coding agent works from an assigned issue and opens a pull request for a developer to review. Agent HQ lets teams run and supervise third-party coding agents together with Copilot. These tools assist writing, changing, and reviewing code inside existing repositories.
- Why is GitHub on The Agentic 80?
- GitHub is listed under Coding agents. Agents that write, test, and ship software. About 4.7 million paid GitHub Copilot subscribers, up roughly 75% year over year (Microsoft earnings, Jan 28, 2026).
- Why is GitHub on The All Things AI 100?
- GitHub is listed under Coding and app building. Tools that write software, for developers and for people who never learned to code. About 4.7 million paid GitHub Copilot subscribers, up roughly 75% year over year (Microsoft earnings, Jan 28, 2026).
- Where is GitHub based, and who owns it?
- GitHub is based in San Francisco, CA, was founded in 2008 and is subsidiary of Microsoft (acquired 2018).