GitHub Copilot Reaches 20 Million Users

GitHub Copilot Surpasses 20 Million Users

GitHub Copilot, the AI-powered coding assistant developed by GitHub and owned by Microsoft, has now been adopted by over 20 million users, as stated by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella during the company’s recent earnings conference call.

This user base represents the total number of individuals who have utilized the tool at any point in time, as confirmed by a GitHub representative to TechCrunch.

Rapid User Growth

The reported figure indicates a significant increase in adoption, with 5 million new users joining the platform within the last three months. Previously, in April, GitHub announced that Copilot had reached 15 million users.

While the total user count is substantial, Microsoft and GitHub do not disclose the number of active users – those who engage with the AI coding tool on a monthly or daily basis. It is anticipated that these active user metrics are considerably lower.

Enterprise Adoption and Revenue

GitHub Copilot is demonstrably popular within the corporate sector, with 90% of companies listed in the Fortune 100 currently utilizing the tool.

Growth in enterprise adoption has increased by approximately 75% compared to the previous quarter, according to Microsoft’s reports.

Nadella highlighted that GitHub Copilot now constitutes a larger business than GitHub itself was at the time of Microsoft’s acquisition in 2018.

The Expanding AI Coding Market

AI coding tools are experiencing a surge in popularity and are proving to be a significant revenue generator within the broader AI landscape.

Despite their growing prominence, the user bases of leading AI coding tools remain relatively small when compared to widely used AI chatbots like ChatGPT and Gemini, which attract hundreds of millions of monthly users.

This difference is attributable to the more specialized nature of software engineering compared to the general informational requests addressed by AI chatbots.

Competition and Innovation

Software engineers and their organizations are demonstrably willing to invest in AI-powered coding solutions.

GitHub Copilot, backed by Microsoft’s extensive enterprise client base and GitHub’s developer ecosystem, is strategically positioned to lead the market for enterprise AI coding tools.

Cursor, a competing AI coding tool, is actively challenging GitHub Copilot’s dominance in the enterprise sector, focusing on attracting talent from emerging AI startups.

Cursor’s daily active user base reportedly exceeded one million in March, and its annualized recurring revenue (ARR) has more than doubled, reaching over $500 million.

Convergence of Features

Initially focused on distinct aspects of the developer experience, GitHub Copilot and Cursor are increasingly converging in their product offerings.

Both companies have recently introduced AI agents designed to review code and identify errors introduced during human coding.

Furthermore, they are developing AI agents to automate programmer workflows, enabling developers to delegate tasks entirely.

Nadella noted significant momentum with GitHub’s AI coding agents during Wednesday’s earnings call.

Additional Competitors

Beyond Cursor, GitHub faces competition from several well-funded companies vying for a share of the AI coding tools market.

These include Google, which acquired the team behind AI coding startup Windsurf, and Cognition, the creator of Devin, which subsequently acquired the remaining Windsurf team.

OpenAI and Anthropic are also developing their own AI coding solutions, leveraging their proprietary AI models – Codex and Claude Code, respectively – in an effort to capture market share.

This emerging market is rapidly becoming one of the most competitive arenas within the broader AI industry.