About GitHub Copilot for Business

About GitHub Copilot for Business

GitHub Copilot is an AI-powered coding assistant that helps developers write code faster. GitHub Copilot is available through GitHub personal accounts with GitHub Copilot for Individuals or through organization accounts with GitHub Copilot for Business.

With Copilot for Business, you can manage access to GitHub Copilot for organizations. Once you grant an organization access to GitHub Copilot, the administrators of that organization can grant access to individuals and teams. For more information, see "Managing Copilot for Business."

GitHub Copilot is available as an extension in Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio, Vim, Neovim, the JetBrains suite of IDEs, and Azure Data Studio. For more information on using GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio Code, Visual Studio, Vim, Neovim, and JetBrains, see "Getting started with GitHub Copilot." For more information on using GitHub Copilot in Azure Data Studio, see GitHub Copilot extension in Microsoft Learn.

Understanding the differences between Copilot for Business and Copilot for Individuals

For more information about proxy support with custom certificates, see "Configuring network settings for GitHub Copilot".

Enabling and setting up Copilot for Business

To use Copilot for Business, you need to set up a subscription for your organization account. For more information, see "Managing your GitHub Copilot subscription for your organization."

After setting up a subscription, you can enable GitHub Copilot for organizations. For more information, see "Enabling and setting up GitHub Copilot for Business."

About billing for Copilot for Business

Copilot for Business subscriptions are billed monthly, based on the number of GitHub Copilot seats assigned to users within your organization. For more information, see "About billing for GitHub Copilot."

Requesting or granting access to GitHub Copilot for Business

Organization members can request access to GitHub Copilot for Business from their organization's owners.

Submitting a request for GitHub Copilot for Business

As a member of an organization, you can request access to GitHub Copilot for Business from your organization's owners. This can be done in a couple of different ways:

• From the GitHub Copilot settings for your personal account

  

• From an empty repository in the organization

  

Managing requests for GitHub Copilot for Business

As an owner of an organization, you can manage requests for GitHub Copilot for Business from your organization's settings. Additionally, GitHub sends you a weekly email with a summary of all pending requests.

1. In the top right corner of GitHub.com, click your profile photo, then click Your organizations.

   

2. Under "Organizations", next to the name of your organization, click Settings.

3. In the "Access" section of the sidebar, click Requests from members.

4. To accept the request and grant the member access to GitHub Copilot for Business, click Buy Copilot for Business.

All requests for GitHub Copilot for Business are grouped together under "Copilot for Business."

About privacy for GitHub Copilot for Business

You have the ability to manage and make choices regarding the collection, retention, and processing of your data, allowing you to maintain control over your privacy while using GitHub Copilot for Business.

What data does GitHub Copilot for Business collect?

GitHub Copilot for Business utilizes data from file content and additional sources to enhance its functionality. This data collection process is aimed at improving the service and involves the gathering and analysis of certain information.

User Engagement Data

When you use GitHub Copilot, it collects information about your interactions with the IDE or editor. This includes actions like accepting or dismissing suggestions, as well as general usage data and error information. The purpose of collecting this data is to measure metrics such as latency and feature engagement. Some of this information may include personal data, but it is stored in a way that does not directly identify you.

Prompts

A Prompt refers to the contextual information that the GitHub Copilot extension sends when you pause typing while working on a file, or when you open the GitHub Copilot pane. These Prompts are only sent in real time. GitHub Copilot for Business does not retain Prompts.

Suggestions

After receiving and processing a Prompt, the AI-model generates one or more lines of proposed text known as Suggestions. These Suggestions are then transmitted back to the GitHub Copilot extension. Suggestions are only sent in real-time. GitHub Copilot for Business does not retain Suggestions.

How is the data in GitHub Copilot for Business used and shared?

User Engagement Data is used by GitHub and Microsoft to provide the service and to enable improvements.

• Evaluating GitHub Copilot: The impact of GitHub Copilot on users is assessed by measuring its positive effects and benefits.
• Fine-tuning ranking and sorting algorithms: The data helps in the optimization and improvement of algorithms used for ranking and sorting suggestions, thereby enhancing the overall user experience.
• Detecting abuse and policy violations: The data is examined to investigate and identify any potential misuse or violation of the Acceptable Use Policies associated with GitHub Copilot.
• Conducting experiments and research: The data is used for conducting experiments and research related to developers and their utilization of developer tools and services. This aids in gaining valuable insights into user behavior and preferences.

How can users of GitHub Copilot for Business control use of their data?

User Engagement Data, including pseudonymous identifiers and general usage data, is necessary for the use of GitHub Copilot and will continue to be collected, processed, and shared with Microsoft when you use GitHub Copilot.

GitHub Copilot for Business does not retain any Prompts or Suggestions.

For more information about privacy for GitHub Copilot for Business, see the "The GitHub Copilot Trust Center."

Further reading

• "GitHub Copilot FAQ"