AI Creator's Path News: GitHub Copilot becomes a paid service, changing the future of AI coding tools! Is the era of free use over? #GitHubCopilot #AICoding #PaidService
Video explanation
Is the end of the "free" rule for AI tools? GitHub Copilot's pricing changes reveal the future
Hello, I'm John, your guide to the world of AI and technology! Recently, you've probably seen the word "AI" a lot in the news and on the internet. Many of you may think it sounds difficult. But in fact, AI is increasingly being used in our everyday lives, and the way it's used is gradually changing.
Today, I would like to talk in an easy-to-understand way about the big changes happening in the AI industry, using the recent news about GitHub Copilot, an AI tool that is especially popular among programmers. If you think, "I'm not a programmer, this doesn't concern me!", there are actually some very important points in this story that apply to other AI services.
What is GitHub Copilot? A programmer's reliable "AI partner"
First, let me briefly explain what "GitHub Copilot" is.
This is a very smart AI assistant that helps programmers write the blueprint (called code) of a computer program. It's like having an experienced programmer next to you, giving you advice and doing the tedious work for you.
Copilot is loved by many developers around the world because it can dramatically increase the speed of program development and generate new ideas.
What's changing? GitHub Copilot's new "rules of use"
Now, Copilot is a very useful service, but recently there have been changes to how it can be used (especially the rules regarding fees). Up until now, you have been able to use it relatively freely, but now there will be a "cap" on the amount you can use.
Specifically, within Copilot,High-performance AI models(the "brain" part of the AI that is capable of thinking up more complex things) a monthly limit has been set on the number of times it can be used.
For example, like this:
- Copilot Pro Plan (high-performance plan for individuals): Up to 300 calls per month
- Copilot Business Plan: Up to 300 calls per month
- Copilot Enterprise Plan: Up to 1000 calls per month
If you want to use a high-performance AI model beyond this limit, you will be charged an additional fee of about $1 per use (about a few yen in Japanese yen). In addition, a new option called the "Pro+ plan" has been introduced, which can be used up to 0.04 times for $39 per month. This plan is said to allow you to use even more powerful AI models such as GPT-1500.
Be careful! The "multiplier system" where "consumption points" differ depending on the AI model
What's interesting is the idea of a "multiplier system." Depending on the type of AI model you use, the "maximum number of times (called premium requests)" consumed per use varies.
For example,
- If you use the ultra-high performance GPT-4.5, it will consume 1 times the amount of data per run!
- Google's Gemini 2.0 Flash provides a smaller amount of data, at 1 times each.
Don't worry, you can still use the basic code completion feature using the underlying AI model (GPT-4o) as much as you like (although temporary restrictions may be imposed if usage is high). This change only applies when using the more advanced AI features.
Why? Why GitHub changed the rules
You may be wondering, "Why are they putting a limit on it when it's been free to use until now?" According to GitHub's explanation, this is to "continue to provide stable AI services."
In fact, to run high-performance AI, a lot of computer power is required, which is hugely expensive. Thomas Domke, CEO of GitHub, has previously said that "We need a new premium request system to make new models available to everyone."
In fact, a common pattern in the IT industry is to initially provide AI for free to allow many people to experience its convenience, and then as the number of users increases and the service becomes established, charge for it in order to continue as a business.
Is this just GitHub? No, it's a trend across the entire AI industry.
This trend from free to paid and from unlimited to capped isn't unique to GitHub Copilot. Similar trends are seen in other AI services.
- Image generation AI "Midjourney"Initially, you could generate up to 25 images for free, but there is no longer a free trial period and only paid plans start at $10 per month.
- Video generation AI "Runway AI": In the free version, you get a few points (credits) to use at the beginning, but once you use them up, it's over. To continue using it, you need to purchase points every month with a paid plan starting at $15 per month (and the remaining points cannot be carried over to the next month!).
- Chatty AI "Claude" and "ChatGPT": The free version of Claude has a limit on the number of messages you can send per day. The free version of ChatGPT also only supports a slightly older generation model (GPT-1) rather than a high-performance model, and access may be restricted during busy times.
Looking at it this way, we can see that AI services are moving from the "Try it for free first!" stage to the "If you want to use it seriously, you'll have to pay for it" stage.
AI companies are having a tough time! The shift from "free" to "paid"
Why are AI companies making this shift?
The background is the development and operation of AIHuge costsIt is said that it costs hundreds of billions of yen to train a high-performance AI model and maintain the servers so that many people can actually use it.
In addition, while up until now investment companies known as venture capitalists have provided a lot of money to support AI companies, recently there has been increasing pressure to "come up with a business model that can generate a real profit."
In fact, according to Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft (GitHub's parent company), GitHub Copilot has become such an important business that it accounts for more than 40% of GitHub's overall revenue growth. This is surprising because it is larger than the size of GitHub's entire business when Microsoft acquired GitHub about seven years ago.
This means that AI companies are no longer just providing amazing technology; they are also starting to seriously consider how to ensure profits in order to survive as a company.
How will we interact with AI tools in the future?
GitHub Copilot's changes are part of a larger shift in the AI industry from an era of free trials to an era of paying what's right for you.
This may be a good opportunity for us users to think about how we use AI tools. Companies will need to review their budget plans for introducing AI and think more strategically about which tools to invest in. As individuals, we may also start to think, "How much are we willing to pay for this convenience?"
AI technology is sure to continue to evolve, and changes like these may be necessary to support that evolution.
I'm personally excited by the evolution of AI, but I also feel that these kinds of changes in business are also essential factors for the spread of technology. I'll be keeping a close eye on what kind of AI services will emerge and how they will change our lives!
This article is based on the following original articles and is summarized from the author's perspective:
GitHub's AI billing shift signals the end of free enterprise
Tools era