Microsoft’s GitHub faces pressure in AI coding race after outages

GitHub, acquired by Microsoft for $7.5 billion in 2018, remains the largest developer platform with 180 million users but is losing ground in AI-assisted coding. Since March, it has experienced over a dozen outages lasting over an hour, exposing weaknesses in its reliance on older data center infrastructure instead of a full migration to Azure. The platform now operates across Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and Oracle cloud systems alongside its own, struggling to meet demand under AI coding surges. The leadership vacuum since former CEO Thomas Dohmke’s departure and Julia Liuson’s recent retirement has worsened instability. GitHub’s technology chief, Vlad Fedorov, admitted the company has not met its own availability standards, while developers report disruptions affecting serious work. Cisco and Zipline Co-founder Ryan Oksenhorn highlighted internal chaos, with one incident reverting code changes. Competitors like Cursor, Anthropic’s Claude Code, and Google’s Gemini Code Assist have gained traction, surpassing GitHub Copilot in market share. The shift to usage-based billing for Copilot has sparked backlash, with some developers canceling subscriptions due to limited functionality. Critics argue GitHub’s lack of leadership and reliability has made it less viable for professional use. Rivals are actively recruiting disgruntled developers, with GitLab marketing itself as a more stable alternative. The broader challenge reflects Microsoft’s struggle to convert its AI leadership into dominance, as GitHub’s foundational role in software development faces growing competition and technical setbacks.