GitHub will remove MAI-Code-1-Flash from all GitHub Copilot experiences on September 10, 2026, following the launch of its replacement, MAI-Code-1.1-Flash, according to the GitHub Changelog notice. Developers and integrators who call the older model by name are asked to move their workflows over before that date.
What actually changes
The retirement is not limited to one surface. GitHub says the model goes away across every Copilot experience, which covers the chat model selector in Visual Studio Code and on github.com, as stated in the same changelog entry. Anything that hardcodes the old model identifier — a script, a CI step, an internal tool, or a saved workflow — is the part most likely to break quietly.
There is no cleanup task at the end. GitHub notes that no action is required to remove the older model once it has been deprecated; it simply stops appearing, per the deprecation announcement.
Enterprise admins have an extra step
Access to the successor model is not automatic everywhere. GitHub states that Copilot Enterprise administrators may need to enable the alternative model through model policies in Copilot settings, and that an admin can confirm availability by checking individual Copilot settings and verifying the policy is enabled for that specific model, according to the changelog. Once the policy is on, the model shows up in the Copilot Chat model selector.
That ordering matters for anyone planning the switch: a developer can follow every migration instruction correctly and still see nothing in the picker until the policy lands. GitHub Enterprise customers with questions are pointed to their account manager.
How to check what you are running
GitHub maintains a live reference for which models are offered under which plan and on which surface, including models eligible for auto model selection, in its supported AI models documentation. That page also flags that model availability is subject to change and that some models may be replaced or updated over time — the general policy this deprecation is an instance of.
Cross-check that reference against the model your team actually selects today. If MAI-Code-1-Flash is still the one answering, the GitHub deprecation notice gives you until September 10, 2026 to change it, and the replacement is MAI-Code-1.1-Flash.
The practical takeaway
Model names in Copilot are becoming a maintenance surface, not a set-and-forget setting. Teams that treat the model selector as configuration — pinned somewhere, reviewed on a schedule — will absorb a swap like this in an afternoon. Teams that scattered a model string across scripts will find out on September 10. The related shift in how Copilot handles context and model routing in VS Code points the same direction: which model answers is increasingly something the platform decides and periodically changes underneath you.
Between now and the cutoff, the useful work is small and concrete: grep for the old model identifier, confirm the enterprise policy for the replacement is enabled, and test one real prompt on the new model before the old one stops answering.
