GitHub Copilot Shifts to Token-Based Pricing, User Bills Skyrocket Over 10x; Coinbase CEO: 80% of AI Workloads Moving to 99% Cheaper Models Within 12-18 Months

On June 1, GitHub Copilot switched from per-request-based billing to token-based pricing, causing heavy users' monthly bills to spike over 10 times. According to internal cost estimates shared by users, one developer's monthly bill is projected to jump from $44.68 to $754.29, with another reporting potential charges of $847 per month.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong predicted that within 12 to 18 months, 80% of AI workloads will migrate to models costing 99% less than current frontier models, with only 20% of advanced tasks like scientific breakthroughs remaining dependent on cutting-edge APIs. Armstrong stated Coinbase is implementing prompt routing strategies to dynamically allocate requests to lower-cost models while maintaining stable total costs despite exponential token consumption growth.