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GitHub Copilot: what’s new and our verdict

GitHub's AI coding assistant in the editor, the CLI, GitHub.com and an agent app.

Official site

Release Ruler for GitHub Copilot: marked at its Reported release date on the timeline of every AI model we track.

At a glance

Evidence
Reported
Released
Oct 15, 2026
Last verified
Oct 25, 2026
Pricing
Not verified
Best for
AI coding agents

Evidence and ranking

Evidence behind this verdict

  1. Sources read4 cited sources, latest fetched Oct 25, 2026. (done)
  2. Facts re-checkedLast verified Oct 25, 2026. (done)
  3. Not run by us yetWe have not run it, so this is labelled Reported. (not done)

Where we rank it (editorial)

Editorial picks, not benchmark scores. How we rank.

Pricing: We did not verify current pricing. See GitHub's plans page. (checked 2026-10-25)

Our verdict

A sensible default if your team already lives on GitHub; check which plan you need for new models.

Good for

  • Teams already on GitHub who want AI in editor, CLI and code scanning fixes
  • Enterprise admins who need model policy controls
  • Developers who want to pick from several vendors' models

Skip if

  • You want a fully open-source stack
  • You are on a plan without access to the newest models (Gemini 4 Argon is Pro+ and above)

Status: Reported. This write-up is based on official release notes and docs; we have not run this release ourselves yet.

Best for

What’s new

GitHub's October Copilot changelog includes general availability of Gemini 4 Argon, agentic autofix for code scanning alerts reaching GA, and dynamic workflows in Copilot CLI and the Copilot app.

  • Oct 15: Agentic autofix for code scanning alerts is generally available.
  • Oct 13: Gemini 4 Argon is generally available in Copilot for Pro+, Max, Business and Enterprise users, selectable in VS Code, Visual Studio, Copilot CLI, the coding agent and the Copilot app. It is billed at provider list pricing under usage-based billing.
  • Oct 1: Dynamic workflows arrive in Copilot CLI and the Copilot app.
  • Oct 15: GitHub announced upcoming deprecation of selected Copilot models in mid-November (and deprecated others on Oct 19).

How to set it up: Start using GitHub Copilot

Steps come from the vendor's own docs or README. We have not run them ourselves.

  1. Use it on GitHub.com

    GitHub says Copilot is built into GitHub, so you can use it there without installing anything.

    https://docs.github.com/en/copilot/get-started/quickstart

  2. Install it in your editor

    The docs have an install page for the Copilot extension in supported IDEs such as VS Code. Sign in with your GitHub account.

  3. Try the CLI

    The docs also cover Copilot CLI. Follow the install section of the quickstart for your platform.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Many surfaces: IDEs, CLI, GitHub.com, agent app
  • Dated, detailed changelog
  • Multiple model vendors in the model picker

Cons

  • Newest models are gated to higher plans
  • Models are retired on short notice (two deprecation notices in October)
  • Usage-based billing for some models makes costs harder to predict

Alternatives and comparisons

  • Cursor: AI code editor and agent platform with cloud agents, a CLI and its own Git hosting (Origin).
  • Claude Code: Anthropic's agentic coding tool for your terminal, IDE and GitHub.
  • Codex CLI: OpenAI's open-source coding agent that runs in your terminal.
  • Amazon Q Developer: AWS's AI coding assistant for IDEs and the CLI, with a free tier and a $19 Pro tier; IDE plugin support ends April 30, 2027.

See all alternatives to GitHub Copilot

FAQ

What is new in GitHub Copilot in October 2026?

Gemini 4 Argon went generally available on Oct 13, agentic autofix for code scanning alerts went GA on Oct 15, and Copilot CLI and the Copilot app gained dynamic workflows on Oct 1.

Which plans get Gemini 4 Argon?

GitHub says Pro+, Max, Business and Enterprise users.

Is Copilot free?

We did not verify current pricing. See GitHub's plans page.

What we have not verified

  • Pricing and plan limits
  • Which model deprecations apply to your plan
  • Real-world quality (not tested)

Sources

Last verified · Agentic Weekly

Part of the week of Oct 12, 2026 archive.

Guides for GitHub Copilot

  • Amazon Q Developer: AWS's AI coding assistant for IDEs and the CLI, with a free tier and a $19 Pro tier; IDE plugin support ends April 30, 2027.
  • Augment Code: Coding agent and 'Cosmos' platform with a Context Engine, CLI and cloud agents; plans are flat team prices with usage included.
  • Devin: Cognition's autonomous software engineer: a cloud coding agent that tests in its own browser and aims to hand back a mergeable pull request.

How to cite this page

Agentic Weekly, "GitHub Copilot: what's new, verdict & setup", last updated 2026-10-25, https://theagenticweekly.com/tools/github-copilot

Keep the Reported or Tested label when you quote a verdict. Plain-text version: https://theagenticweekly.com/tools/github-copilot.md. More for AI assistants: /ai, /tools.json, /llms.txt.