GitHub is scrapping some Claude, OpenAI, and Gemini models in Copilot – here's what you need to know and what alternatives are available

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A raft of AI models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google have been officially cut from the GitHub Copilot service.

First announced in late September, users have had ample time to prepare for the deprecation cut-off date, which was confirmed in a blog post on 23 October.

The move comes as the company looks to usher users away from older models toward up-to-date options from the aforementioned providers.

“As part of our commitment to a fast, high‑quality Copilot experience, we regularly evaluate and retire older models in favor of newer, more capable ones,” the company said in September.

Anthropic models including Claude Sonnet 3.7, Claude Sonnet 3.7 Thinking, and Claude Opus 4 will be deprecated as part of the move while Gemini 2.0 Flash will be scrapped.

OpenAI models set for the chopping block include:

GPT o3
GPT o1 mini
GPT 03 mini
GPT 04 mini

What does this mean for GitHub users?

So what does this mean for users? Essentially, their use across “all GitHub Copilot experiences” will be removed, the company noted. This spans Copilot Chat, ask and agent modes, inline edits, and code competition tasks.

As a result of the move, GitHub has advised users to update workflows and integrations to use supported models.

“Copilot Enterprise administrators may need to enable access to alternative models through their model policies in Copilot settings,” GitHub said.

“As an administrator, you can verify availability by checking your individual Copilot settings and confirming that the policy is enabled for the specific model.”

GitHub added that no action is required on the part of admins to remove deprecated models.

If you’re wondering which alternative models are best following the deprecation cut-off date, GitHub has you covered.

Here’s a handy list of options:

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Alternative models
Retired Models	Newer Options	Header Cell - Column 2
Claude Sonnet 3.7	Claude Sonnet 4.5	Row 0 - Cell 2
Claude Sonnet 3.7 Thinking	Claude Sonnet 4.5	Row 1 - Cell 2
Claude Opus 4	Claude Opus 4.1	Row 2 - Cell 2
Gemini 2.0 Flash	Gemini 2.5 Pro	Row 3 - Cell 2
GPT o3	GPT-5	Row 4 - Cell 2
GPT o1 mini	GPT-5 mini	Row 5 - Cell 2
GPT o3 mini	GPT-5 mini	Row 6 - Cell 2
GPT o4 mini	GPT-5 mini	Row 7 - Cell 2

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Ross Kelly is ITPro's News & Analysis Editor, responsible for leading the brand's news output and in-depth reporting on the latest stories from across the business technology landscape. Ross was previously a Staff Writer, during which time he developed a keen interest in cyber security, business leadership, and emerging technologies.

He graduated from Edinburgh Napier University in 2016 with a BA (Hons) in Journalism, and joined ITPro in 2022 after four years working in technology conference research.

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