GitHub#GitHub Pages

The development of the GitHub platform began on October 19, 2005.{{cite web |url = https://blogs.esri.com/esri/arcgis/2014/02/10/github-ceo-and-co-founder-chris-wanstrath-keynoting-esris-devsummit/ |title = GitHub CEO and Co-Founder Chris Wanstrath Keynoting Esri's DevSummit! |first1 = Kristina |last1 = Weis |date = February 10, 2014 |quote = in 2007 they began working on GitHub as a side project |access-date = February 13, 2018 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042240/https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/overview/?rmedium=bulk-redirect&rsource=https%3A%2F%2Fblogs.esri.com%2Fesri%2Farcgis%2F2014%2F02%2F10%2Fgithub-ceo-and-co-founder-chris-wanstrath-keynoting-esris-devsummit%2F |url-status = live }}{{cite web |url = https://github.com/blog/185-github-turns-one |title = GitHub Turns One! |work = GitHub |date = October 19, 2008 |first = Tom |last = Preston-Werner |access-date = March 28, 2014 |archive-date = April 21, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140421210635/https://github.com/blog/185-github-turns-one |url-status = live }}{{cite web |url = https://www.slideshare.net/err/inside-github/28-2007_octoberThe_rst_commit_was |title = The first commit was on a Friday night in October, around 10 pm. |date = December 7, 2009 |first = Chris |last = Wanstrath |access-date = November 4, 2017 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042238/https://www.slideshare.net/err/inside-github/28-2007_octoberThe_rst_commit_was |url-status = live }} The site was launched in April 2008 by Tom Preston-Werner, Chris Wanstrath, P. J. Hyett and Scott Chacon after it had been available for a few months as a beta release.{{cite web |url = https://www.sitepoint.com/github-gist-is-pastie-on-steroids/ |title = GitHub Gist is Pastie on Steroids |date = July 24, 2008 |first1 = Josh |last1 = Catone |quote = GitHub hosts about 10,000 projects and officially launched in April of this year after a beta period of a few months. |access-date = February 13, 2018 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042257/https://www.sitepoint.com/github-gist-is-pastie-on-steroids/ |url-status = live }} Its name was chosen as a compound of Git and hub.{{cite web |url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XpnKHJAok8&t=1m30s |title = Tech Talk: Linus Torvalds on git (at 00:01:30) |date = 14 May 2007 |via = YouTube |access-date = 2022-10-03 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151220133030/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XpnKHJAok8&t=1m30s |archive-date = 20 December 2015}}

GitHub, Inc. was originally a flat organization with no middle managers, instead relying on self-management.{{cite web|url=https://tomayko.com/writings/management-style|title=Show How, Don't Tell What – A Management Style|last=Tomayko|first=Ryan|date=April 2, 2012|access-date=August 28, 2013|archive-date=December 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201209045932/https://tomayko.com/writings/management-style|url-status=live}} Employees could choose to work on projects that interested them (open allocation), but the chief executive set salaries.{{cite news|url=https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/28/github-has-big-dreams-for-open-source-software-and-more/?_r=0|title=Dreams of 'Open' Everything|last=Hardy|first=Quentin|newspaper=New York Times|date=December 28, 2012 |access-date=February 13, 2018|archive-date=November 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120014019/https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/12/28/github-has-big-dreams-for-open-source-software-and-more/?_r=0|url-status=live}}

In 2014, the company added a layer of middle management in response to harassment allegations against its co-founder and then-CEO, Thomas Preston-Werner, and his wife, Theresa Preston-Werner. As a result of the scandal, Tom Preston-Werner resigned from his position as CEO.{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/harassment-claims-make-startup-github-grow-up-1405639553|title=Harassment claims make startup GitHub grow up|last=Evelyn|first=Rusli|date=July 17, 2014|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=July 18, 2014|archive-date=June 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615190646/https://www.wsj.com/articles/harassment-claims-make-startup-github-grow-up-1405639553|url-status=live}} Co-founder and Product lead, Chris Wanstrath, became CEO. Julio Avalos, then General Counsel and Administrative Officer, assumed control over GitHub's business operations and day-to-day management.{{cite web | url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/github-undergoing-full-blown-overhaul-160905630.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAF0JNMhS_PCRIDR6jFDZmtCuqZ4EYRKWzDyjswgUXOOB_M8kbcmhmMwD5pXsUmHZNaAV5IK9tpRkXylFrJMwgkQhloKmSMj7px6u8ceiMRgR4roVa76U7z4htCJK96L2J5LqJnQUWBoksNEbU6jDJnqPo-kCFZO4P_IISmUT7prQ | title=GitHub is undergoing a full-blown overhaul as execs and employees depart — and we have the full inside story }}

GitHub was a bootstrapped start-up business, which in its first years provided enough revenue to be funded solely by its three founders and start taking on employees.{{cite news|url=https://pando.com/2013/06/20/github-ceo-explains-why-the-company-took-so-damn-long-to-raise-venture-capital/|title=GitHub CEO explains why the company took so damn long to raise venture capital|last1=Michael|first1=Carney|date=June 20, 2013|work=PandoDaily|access-date=July 10, 2014|archive-date=December 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203134439/https://pando.com/2013/06/20/github-ceo-explains-why-the-company-took-so-damn-long-to-raise-venture-capital/|url-status=live}}

In July 2012, four years after the company was founded, Andreessen Horowitz invested $100 million in venture capital with a $750 million valuation.{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2012/07/09/github-pours-energies-into-enterprise-raises-100-million-from-power-vc-andreesen-horowitz/|title=GitHub Pours Energies into Enterprise – Raises $100 Million From Power VC Andreessen Horowitz|website=TechCrunch|date=July 9, 2012 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-07|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801011858/https://techcrunch.com/2012/07/09/github-pours-energies-into-enterprise-raises-100-million-from-power-vc-andreesen-horowitz/|url-status=live}}

In July 2015 GitHub raised another $250 million (~${{Format price|{{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=250000000|start_year=2015}}}} in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}) of venture capital in a series B round. The lead investor was Sequoia Capital, and other investors were Andreessen Horowitz, Thrive Capital, IVP (Institutional Venture Partners) and other venture capital funds.{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/07/29/github-raises-250m-series-b-round-to-take-risks/|title=GitHub Raises $250M Series B Round To Take Risks|last=Lardinois|first=Frederic|website=TechCrunch|date=July 29, 2015 |access-date=July 4, 2016|archive-date=November 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130195009/https://techcrunch.com/2015/07/29/github-raises-250m-series-b-round-to-take-risks/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/07/29/github-raises-250m-series-b-round-to-take-risks/|title=GitHub Raises $250M Series B Round Led By Sequoia Capital|website=TechCrunch|date=July 29, 2015 |language=en-US|access-date=2020-02-07|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801022414/https://techcrunch.com/2015/07/29/github-raises-250m-series-b-round-to-take-risks/|url-status=live}} The company was then valued at approximately $2 billion.{{cite magazine|url=http://fortune.com/2015/07/29/github-raises-250-million-in-new-funding-now-valued-at-2-billion/|title=GitHub raises $250 million in new funding, now valued at $2 billion|date=July 29, 2015|magazine=Fortune|access-date=July 30, 2015|archive-date=August 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807084248/https://fortune.com/2015/07/29/github-raises-250-million-in-new-funding-now-valued-at-2-billion/|url-status=live}}

{{as of|2023|post=,}} GitHub was estimated to generate $1 billion in revenue annually.{{cite web|title=Microsoft says GitHub now has a $1B ARR, 90M active users|url=https://techcrunch.com/2022/10/25/microsoft-says-github-now-has-a-1b-arr-90m-active-users/|website=TechCrunch |date=October 25, 2022|access-date=March 20, 2023|archive-date=March 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230314070710/https://techcrunch.com/2022/10/25/microsoft-says-github-now-has-a-1b-arr-90m-active-users/|url-status=live}}

The GitHub service was developed by Chris Wanstrath, P. J. Hyett, Tom Preston-Werner, and Scott Chacon using Ruby on Rails, and started in February 2008. The company, GitHub, Inc., was formed in 2007 and is located in San Francisco.{{cite web|url=https://www.heise.de/developer/meldung/GitHub-populaerer-als-SourceForge-und-Google-Code-1255416.html|title=GitHub populärer als SourceForge und Google Code|first=Alexander|last=Neumann|website=heise Developer|date=6 June 2011 |access-date=June 8, 2018|archive-date=August 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200828155712/https://www.heise.de/developer/meldung/GitHub-populaerer-als-SourceForge-und-Google-Code-1255416.html|url-status=live}}File:GithubAWSTorontoSummit.jpg

File:Mapping collaborative software on GitHub.png. The circular charts surrounding the two hemispheres depict the total number of GitHub users (left) and commits (right) per country.]]

On February 24, 2009, GitHub announced that within the first year of being online, GitHub had accumulated over 46,000 public repositories, 17,000 of which were formed in the previous month. At that time, about 6,200 repositories had been forked at least once, and 4,600 had been merged.

That same year, the site was used by over 100,000 users, according to GitHub,{{Cite web |last=Hyett |first=P. J. |date=2009-07-06 |title=100,000 Users! |url=https://github.blog/2009-07-06-100-000-users/ |access-date=2024-05-04 |website=The GitHub Blog |language=en-US}} and had grown to host 90,000 unique public repositories, 12,000 having been forked at least once, for a total of 135,000 repositories.{{cite web|url=https://wiki.dandascalescu.com/essays/pita-threshold|title=The PITA Threshold: GitHub vs. CPAN|last=Dascalescu|first=Dan|date=November 3, 2009|work=Dan Dascalescu's Wiki|access-date=February 13, 2018|archive-date=June 18, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200618030357/https://wiki.dandascalescu.com/essays/pita-threshold|url-status=dead}}

In 2010, GitHub was hosting 1 million repositories.{{cite web|url=https://github.com/blog/685-one-million-repositories|title=One Million Repositories |website=GitHub Blog |first1=Zach |last1=Holman |date=July 25, 2010|access-date=April 29, 2011|archive-date=March 13, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150313081831/https://github.com/blog/685-one-million-repositories|url-status=live}} A year later, this number doubled.{{cite web|url=https://github.com/blog/841-those-are-some-big-numbers|title=Those are some big numbers |website=GitHub Blog |first1=Kyle |last1=Neath |date=April 20, 2011|access-date=April 29, 2011|archive-date=April 21, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421213129/https://github.com/blog/841-those-are-some-big-numbers|url-status=live}} ReadWriteWeb reported that GitHub had surpassed SourceForge and Google Code in total number of commits for the period of January to May 2011.{{cite web|url=https://readwrite.com/2011/06/02/github-has-passed-sourceforge|title=Github Has Surpassed Sourceforge and Google Code in Popularity|date=June 2, 2011 |author=Klint finley |website=ReadWrite |quote=During the period Black Duck examined, Github had 1,153,059 commits, Sourceforge had 624,989, Google Code and 287,901 and CodePlex had 49,839.|access-date=February 13, 2018|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801045331/https://readwrite.com/2011/06/02/github-has-passed-sourceforge|url-status=live}} On January 16, 2013, GitHub passed the 3 million users mark and was then hosting more than 5 million repositories.{{cite web|url=https://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/04/11/code-sharing-site-github-turns-five-and-hits-3-5-million-users-6-million-repositories/ |first1=Robin |last1=Wauters |title=Code-sharing site Github turns five and hits 3.5 million users, 6 million repositories|date=April 11, 2013|publisher=TheNextWeb |access-date=April 11, 2013|archive-date=September 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927143741/https://thenextweb.com/insider/2013/04/11/code-sharing-site-github-turns-five-and-hits-3-5-million-users-6-million-repositories/|url-status=live}} By the end of the year, the number of repositories was twice as great, reaching 10 million repositories.{{cite web|url=https://github.com/blog/1724-10-million-repositories |first1=Brian |last1=Doll |title=10 Million Repositories|date=December 23, 2013|publisher=The GitHub Blog |access-date=December 28, 2013|archive-date=October 9, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009171532/https://github.com/blog/1724-10-million-repositories|url-status=live}}

In 2015, GitHub opened an office in Japan, its first outside of the U.S.{{cite web|date=June 4, 2015|title=GitHub Expands To Japan, Its First Office Outside The U.S.|url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/06/04/github-expands-to-japan-its-first-office-outside-the-u-s/ |first1=Jon |last1=Russell |website=TechCrunch|access-date=June 25, 2017|archive-date=October 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023041423/https://techcrunch.com/2015/06/04/github-expands-to-japan-its-first-office-outside-the-u-s/?ncid=rss|url-status=live}}

On February 28, 2018, GitHub fell victim to the third-largest distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack in history, with incoming traffic reaching a peak of about 1.35 terabits per second.{{cite news|title=GitHub Survived the Biggest DDoS Attack Ever Recorded|url=https://www.wired.com/story/github-ddos-memcached/|access-date=March 2, 2018|work=Wired.com|archive-date=December 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201206213856/https://www.wired.com/story/github-ddos-memcached/|url-status=live}}

On June 19, 2018, GitHub expanded its GitHub Education by offering free education bundles to all schools.{{Cite news|last=Hughes|first=Matthew|date=June 19, 2018|title=GitHub's free education bundle is now available to all schools|language=en-US|work=The Next Web|url=https://thenextweb.com/dd/2018/06/19/github-education-is-now-available-to-all-schools/|access-date=July 2, 2018|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109042408/https://thenextweb.com/dd/2018/06/19/github-education-is-now-available-to-all-schools/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|title=GitHub Education is a free software development package for schools|language=en-US|work=Engadget|url=https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/19/github-education-is-a-free-software-development-package-for-scho/|access-date=July 2, 2018|archive-date=June 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190621232800/https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/19/github-education-is-a-free-software-development-package-for-scho/|url-status=live}}

File:Number of open source contributors by company.png

From 2012, Microsoft became a significant user of GitHub, using it to host open-source projects and development tools such as .NET Core, Chakra Core, MSBuild, PowerShell, PowerToys, Visual Studio Code, Windows Calculator, Windows Terminal and the bulk of its product documentation (now to be found on Microsoft Docs).{{Cite news|date=June 4, 2018|title=Microsoft confirms it will acquire GitHub for $7.5 billion|language=en-US|work=VentureBeat|url=https://venturebeat.com/2018/06/04/microsoft-confirms-it-will-acquire-github-for-7-5-billion/|access-date=June 4, 2018|archive-date=November 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112023152/https://venturebeat.com/2018/06/04/microsoft-confirms-it-will-acquire-github-for-7-5-billion/|url-status=live}}

On June 4, 2018, Microsoft announced its intent to acquire GitHub for US$7.5 billion (~${{Format price|{{Inflation|index=US-GDP|value=7500000000|start_year=2018}}}} in {{Inflation/year|US-GDP}}). The deal closed on October 26, 2018.{{cite web |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/26/17954714/microsoft-github-deal-acquisition-complete |title=Microsoft completes GitHub acquisition |publisher=Vox |website=The Verge |first=Tom |last=Warren |date=2018-10-26 |access-date=July 27, 2020 |archive-date=November 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109030720/https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/26/17954714/microsoft-github-deal-acquisition-complete |url-status=live }} GitHub continued to operate independently as a community, platform and business.{{Cite web|url=https://news.microsoft.com/2018/06/04/microsoft-to-acquire-github-for-7-5-billion/|title=Microsoft to acquire GitHub for $7.5 billion|date=2018-06-04|website=Stories|language=en-US|access-date=2020-01-22|archive-date=June 4, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180604142244/https://news.microsoft.com/2018/06/04/microsoft-to-acquire-github-for-7-5-billion/|url-status=live}} Under Microsoft, the service was led by Xamarin's Nat Friedman, reporting to Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of Microsoft Cloud and AI. Nat Friedman resigned November 3, 2021; he was replaced by Thomas Dohmke.{{cite news |last1=Nat |first1=Friedman |title=Thank You, GitHub |url=https://github.blog/2021-11-03-thank-you-github/ |access-date=31 May 2022 |publisher=GitHub Blog |date=November 3, 2021 |archive-date=May 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220529123528/https://github.blog/2021-11-03-thank-you-github/ |url-status=live }}

There have been concerns from developers Kyle Simpson, JavaScript trainer and author, and Rafael Laguna, CEO at Open-Xchange over Microsoft's purchase, citing uneasiness over Microsoft's handling of previous acquisitions, such as Nokia's mobile business and Skype.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/18/17474284/microsoft-github-acquisition-developer-reaction|title=Here's what GitHub developers really think about Microsoft's acquisition|last=Warren|first=Tom|work=The Verge|access-date=August 22, 2018|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109031637/https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/18/17474284/microsoft-github-acquisition-developer-reaction|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/analysis/3033566/microsoft-has-snapped-up-github-and-the-internet-has-feelings|title=Microsoft has snapped up GitHub and the internet has feelings {{!}} TheINQUIRER|last=Merriman|first=Chris|work=The Inquirer|access-date=August 22, 2018|language=en|archive-date=December 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191219195845/https://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/analysis/3033566/microsoft-has-snapped-up-github-and-the-internet-has-feelings|url-status=unfit}}

This acquisition was in line with Microsoft's business strategy under CEO Satya Nadella, which has seen a larger focus on cloud computing services, alongside the development of and contributions to open-source software.{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2018/06/04/microsoft-has-acquired-github-for-7-5b-in-microsoft-stock/|title=Microsoft has acquired GitHub for $7.5B in stock|website=TechCrunch|date=June 4, 2018 |language=en-US|access-date=June 4, 2018|archive-date=October 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025091838/https://techcrunch.com/2018/06/04/microsoft-has-acquired-github-for-7-5b-in-microsoft-stock/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/4/17422788/microsoft-github-acquisition-official-deal|title=Microsoft confirms it will acquire GitHub for $7.5 billion|work=The Verge|access-date=June 4, 2018|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109040655/https://www.theverge.com/2018/6/4/17422788/microsoft-github-acquisition-official-deal|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://qz.com/1295693/github-users-already-fuming-about-companys-sale-to-microsoft/|title=GitHub users are already fuming about the company's sale to Microsoft|last=Horwitz|first=Josh|work=Quartz|access-date=June 9, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801043518/https://qz.com/1295693/github-users-already-fuming-about-companys-sale-to-microsoft/|url-status=live}} Harvard Business Review argued that Microsoft was intending to acquire GitHub to get access to its user base, so it can be used as a loss leader to encourage the use of its other development products and services.{{Cite news|url=https://hbr.org/2018/06/why-microsoft-is-willing-to-pay-so-much-for-github|title=Why Microsoft Is Willing to Pay So Much for GitHub|date=June 6, 2018|work=Harvard Business Review|access-date=June 9, 2018|archive-date=November 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201123115926/https://hbr.org/2018/06/why-microsoft-is-willing-to-pay-so-much-for-github|url-status=live}}

Concerns over the sale bolstered interest in competitors: Bitbucket (owned by Atlassian), GitLab and SourceForge (owned by Slashdot) reported that they had seen spikes in new users intending to migrate projects from GitHub to their respective services.{{Cite news|url=https://blog.bitbucket.org/2018/06/04/10-reasons-teams-switching-github-bitbucket-microsoft-acquisition|title=10 reasons why teams are switching from GitHub to Bitbucket after Microsoft acquisition|access-date=June 4, 2018|language=en|archive-date=July 28, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180728190854/https://blog.bitbucket.org/2018/06/04/10-reasons-teams-switching-github-bitbucket-microsoft-acquisition/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/github-rivals-gain-from-microsoft-acquisition-but-its-no-mass-exodus-yet/|title=GitHub rivals gain from Microsoft acquisition but it's no mass exodus, yet|last=Tung|first=Liam|work=ZDNet|access-date=June 9, 2018|language=en|archive-date=November 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112000719/https://www.zdnet.com/article/github-rivals-gain-from-microsoft-acquisition-but-its-no-mass-exodus-yet/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.techrepublic.com/article/if-microsoft-buying-github-freaks-you-out-here-are-your-best-alternatives/|title=If Microsoft buying GitHub freaks you out, here are your best alternatives|work=TechRepublic|access-date=June 4, 2018|language=en|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109011703/https://www.techrepublic.com/article/if-microsoft-buying-github-freaks-you-out-here-are-your-best-alternatives/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://sourceforge.net/p/forge/documentation/GitHub%20Importer/|title=GitHub Importer|work=SourceForge|access-date=June 12, 2018|language=en|archive-date=December 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201220754/https://sourceforge.net/p/forge/documentation/GitHub|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last1=Mathews |first1=Jennifer |title=GitHub vs GitLab |url=https://resources.github.com/devops/tools/compare/#compare-gitlab |website=GitHub Resources |publisher=GitHub |access-date=31 May 2022 |archive-date=June 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220601023758/https://resources.github.com/devops/tools/compare/#compare-gitlab |url-status=live }}

In September 2019, GitHub acquired Semmle, a code analysis tool.{{Cite web|last=Lardinois|first=Frederic|date=2019-09-19|title=GitHub acquires code analysis tool Semmle|url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/18/github-acquires-code-analysis-tool-semmle/|access-date=2020-12-23|website=TechCrunch|archive-date=January 17, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117060023/https://techcrunch.com/2019/09/18/github-acquires-code-analysis-tool-semmle/|url-status=live}} In February 2020, GitHub launched in India under the name GitHub India Private Limited.{{Cite web|last=Mehta|first=Ivan|date=2020-02-12|title=GitHub launches an Indian subsidiary to boost its developer community|url=https://thenextweb.com/dd/2020/02/12/github-launches-an-indian-subsidiary-to-boost-its-developer-community/|access-date=2020-03-02|website=The Next Web|language=en-us|archive-date=October 22, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201022132744/https://thenextweb.com/dd/2020/02/12/github-launches-an-indian-subsidiary-to-boost-its-developer-community/|url-status=live}} In March 2020, GitHub announced that it was acquiring npm, a JavaScript packaging vendor, for an undisclosed sum of money.{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/github-acquiring-npm-startup-11-million-developers-2020-3|title=GitHub is acquiring NPM, a service used by 12 million developers|website=Business Insider|date=March 16, 2020|access-date=March 16, 2020|archive-date=September 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200908002749/https://www.businessinsider.com/github-acquiring-npm-startup-11-million-developers-2020-3|url-status=live}} The deal was closed on April 15, 2020.{{cite web |last1=Epling |first1=Jeremy |title=npm has joined GitHub |url=https://github.blog/2020-04-15-npm-has-joined-github/ |website=GitHub |publisher=GitHub, Inc |date=15 April 2020 |access-date=July 16, 2020 |archive-date=November 20, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120065121/https://github.blog/2020-04-15-npm-has-joined-github/ |url-status=live }}

In early July 2020, the GitHub Archive Program was established to archive its open-source code in perpetuity.

GitHub's mascot is an anthropomorphized "octocat" with five octopus-like arms.{{cite web|url=https://octodex.github.com/faq.html|title=GitHub Octodex FAQ|website=github.com|access-date=September 21, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161114181006/https://octodex.github.com/faq.html|archive-date=November 14, 2016|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=https://github.com/blog/1929-from-sticker-to-sculpture-the-making-of-the-octocat-figurine|title=From Sticker to Sculpture: The making of the Octocat figurine|last=Jaramillo|first=Tony|date=November 24, 2014|website=The GitHub Blog|publisher=GitHub|access-date=April 19, 2017|archive-date=March 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316051024/https://github.com/blog/1929-from-sticker-to-sculpture-the-making-of-the-octocat-figurine|url-status=live}} The character was created by graphic designer Simon Oxley as clip art to sell on iStock,{{cite web|url=https://pando.com/2013/07/08/original-github-octocat-designer-simon-oxley-on-his-famous-creation-i-dont-remember-drawing-it/|title=Original GitHub Octocat designer Simon Oxley on his famous creation: "I don't remember drawing it"|last=DeAmicis|first=Carmel|date=July 8, 2013|website=PandoDaily|access-date=April 19, 2017|archive-date=December 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203115301/https://pando.com/2013/07/08/original-github-octocat-designer-simon-oxley-on-his-famous-creation-i-dont-remember-drawing-it/|url-status=live}} a website that enables designers to market royalty-free digital images. The illustration GitHub chose was a character that Oxley had named Octopuss. Since GitHub wanted Octopuss for their logo (a use that the iStock license disallows), they negotiated with Oxley to buy exclusive rights to the image.

GitHub renamed Octopuss to Octocat, and trademarked the character along with the new name. Later, GitHub hired illustrator Cameron McEfee to adapt Octocat for different purposes on the website and promotional materials; McEfee and various GitHub users have since created hundreds of variations of the character, which are available on [https://octodex.github.com/ The Octodex].{{cite web|url=http://cameronmcefee.com/work/the-octocat/|title=The Octocat—a nerdy household name|last=McEfee|first=Cameron|date=May 12, 2016|website=CameronMcEfee.com|publisher=Cameron McEfee|access-date=April 19, 2017|archive-date=November 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101011045/http://cameronmcefee.com/work/the-octocat/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2018/06/04/technology/culture/octocat-github-microsoft/|title=What IS that thing behind Satya Nadella in the GitHub photo?|last=Goldman|first=David|work=CNNMoney|access-date=July 19, 2018|archive-date=January 12, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190112212049/https://money.cnn.com/2018/06/04/technology/culture/octocat-github-microsoft/|url-status=live}}

Projects on GitHub can be accessed and managed using the standard Git command-line interface; all standard Git commands work with it. GitHub also allows users to browse public repositories on the site. Multiple desktop clients and Git plugins are also available. In addition, the site provides social networking-like functions such as feeds, followers, wikis (using wiki software called Gollum), and a social network graph to display how developers work on their versions ("forks") of a repository and what fork (and branch within that fork) is newest.

Anyone can browse and download public repositories, but only registered users can contribute content to repositories. With a registered user account, users can have discussions, manage repositories, submit contributions to others' repositories, and review changes to code. GitHub began offering limited private repositories at no cost in January 2019 (limited to three contributors per project). Previously, only public repositories were free.{{Cite web|url=http://fortune.com/2019/01/07/microsoft-github-free-code-projects-small-teams-repositories/|title=Microsoft-Owned GitHub Just Made It Free for Coders to Keep Projects Private in Small Teams|website=Fortune|language=en|access-date=2019-06-13|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042200/https://fortune.com/2019/01/07/microsoft-github-free-code-projects-small-teams-repositories/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/github-is-giving-free-users-unlimited-private-repositories/|title=GitHub is giving free users unlimited private repositories|last=Zhou|first=Marrian|website=CNET|language=en|access-date=2019-06-13|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042228/https://www.cnet.com/news/github-is-giving-free-users-unlimited-private-repositories/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/github-adds-free-private-repositories-2019-1|title=GitHub makes its first major move since Microsoft bought it for $7.5 billion — and it's something customers have long been asking for|last=Chan|first=Rosalie|website=Business Insider|access-date=2019-06-13|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042218/https://www.businessinsider.com/github-adds-free-private-repositories-2019-1|url-status=live}} On April 14, 2020, GitHub made "all of the core GitHub features" free for everyone, including "private repositories with unlimited collaborators."{{cite web| url=https://github.blog/2020-04-14-github-is-now-free-for-teams/| title=GitHub is now free for teams | first=Nat| last=Friedman| website=github.blog| date=April 14, 2020 | archive-date=14 April 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200414193839/https://github.blog/2020-04-14-github-is-now-free-for-teams/| url-status=live}}

The fundamental software that underpins GitHub is Git itself, written by Linus Torvalds, creator of Linux. The additional software that provides the GitHub user interface was written using Ruby on Rails and Erlang by GitHub, Inc. developers Wanstrath,{{cite web |url = http://doeswhat.com/2012/03/06/interview-with-chris-wanstrath-github/ |title = Interview with Chris Wanstrath |publisher = Doeswhat.com |date = March 6, 2012 |access-date = February 26, 2013 |archive-date = March 5, 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130305051939/http://doeswhat.com/2012/03/06/interview-with-chris-wanstrath-github/ |url-status = dead }} Hyett, and Preston-Werner.

The primary purpose of GitHub is to facilitate the version control and issue tracking aspects of software development. Labels, milestones, responsibility assignment, and a search engine are available for issue tracking. For version control, Git (and, by extension, GitHub) allows pull requests to propose changes to the source code. Users who can review the proposed changes can see a diff between the requested changes and approve them. In Git terminology, this action is called "committing" and one instance of it is a "commit." A history of all commits is kept and can be viewed at a later time.

In addition, GitHub supports the following formats and features:

• Documentation,{{Cite web|title=GitHub.com Help Documentation|url=https://docs.github.com/en|access-date=2021-09-21|website=GitHub Docs|language=en|archive-date=November 5, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105200824/https://docs.github.com/en|url-status=live}} including automatically rendered README files in a variety of Markdown-like file formats (see {{Section link|README|On GitHub}})
• Wikis,{{Cite web|title=About wikis|url=https://docs.github.com/en/communities/documenting-your-project-with-wikis/about-wikis|access-date=2021-09-21|website=GitHub Docs|language=en|archive-date=September 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921034733/https://docs.github.com/en/communities/documenting-your-project-with-wikis/about-wikis|url-status=live}} with some repositories consisting solely of wiki content. These include curated lists of recommended software which have become known as awesome lists.{{cite web|url=https://leonardomontini.dev/github-awesome-lists/|title=The awesome side of GitHub — Awesome lists|first=Leonardo|last=Montini|date=2023-05-07|accessdate=2023-09-30}}{{cite web|url=https://www.hostinger.com/tutorials/most-popular-github-repos|title=15 most popular GitHub repositories every developer should know|author=Tashia T|publisher=Hostfinger|date=2023-06-08|accessdate=2023-09-30}}
• GitHub Codespaces, an online IDE providing users with a virtual machine intended to be a work environment to build and test code{{Cite web |title=GitHub Codespaces documentation |url=https://ghdocs-prod.azurewebsites.net/en/codespaces |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=GitHub Docs |language=en |archive-date=2022-10-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018184621/https://ghdocs-prod.azurewebsites.net/en/codespaces |url-status=dead }}{{Cite web |title=GitHub Codespaces – Github |url=https://github.com/features/codespaces |access-date=2023-08-15 |website=GitHub|language=en}}{{Cite web |title=GitHub Codespaces documentation – GitHub Docs |url=https://docs.github.com/en/codespaces |access-date=2023-08-15 |website=GitHub Docs |language=en}}
• Graphs: pulse, contributors, commits, code frequency, punch card, network, members
• Integrations Directory{{cite web |url = https://github.com/integrations |title = Integrations Directory |work = GitHub |access-date = April 30, 2016 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042236/https://github.com/integrations |url-status = live }}
• Email notifications{{Cite web|title=About email notifications for pushes to your repository|url=https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/managing-repository-settings/about-email-notifications-for-pushes-to-your-repository|access-date=2021-09-21|website=GitHub Docs|language=en|archive-date=September 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921034731/https://docs.github.com/en/repositories/managing-your-repositorys-settings-and-features/managing-repository-settings/about-email-notifications-for-pushes-to-your-repository|url-status=live}}
• Discussions{{Cite news|title=GitHub Discussions Documentation|url=https://docs.github.com/en/discussions|access-date=2021-09-21|website=GitHub Docs|language=en|archive-date=September 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921071947/https://docs.github.com/en/discussions|url-status=live}}
• Option to subscribe someone to notifications by @ mentioning them.{{cite web |url = https://github.com/blog/821 |title = Mention @somebody. They're notified. |work = GitHub |date = March 23, 2011 |access-date = April 30, 2016 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042255/https://github.blog/2011-03-23-mention-somebody-they-re-notified/ |url-status = live }}
• Emojis{{cite web |url = https://help.github.com/categories/writing-on-github/ |title = Github Help / Categories / Writing on GitHub |publisher = Github.com |access-date = April 30, 2016 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042258/https://docs.github.com/en/github/writing-on-github |url-status = live }}
• Nested task-lists within files
• Visualization of geospatial data
• 3D render files can be previewed using an integrated STL file viewer that displays the files on a "3D canvas."{{cite web |url = https://makezine.com/2013/04/09/github-now-supports-stl-file-viewing/ |title = GitHub Now Supports STL File Viewing |date = April 9, 2013 |last1 = Weinhoffer |first1 = Eric |access-date = February 13, 2018 |archive-date = March 22, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042257/https://makezine.com/2013/04/09/github-now-supports-stl-file-viewing/ |url-status = live }} The viewer is powered by WebGL and Three.js.
• Support for previewing many common image formats, including Photoshop's PSD files
• PDF document viewer
• Security Alerts of known Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures in different packages

GitHub's Terms of Service do not require public software projects hosted on GitHub to meet the Open Source Definition. The terms of service state, "By setting your repositories to be viewed publicly, you agree to allow others to view and fork your repositories."{{cite web |url=https://help.github.com/articles/github-terms-of-service/ |title=GitHub Terms of Service – User Documentation |publisher=Help.github.com |date=February 11, 2016 |access-date=December 5, 2016 |archive-date=June 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150624142711/https://help.github.com/articles/github-terms-of-service/ |url-status=live }}

GitHub Enterprise is a self-managed version of GitHub with similar functionality. It can be run on an organization's hardware or a cloud provider and has been available {{as of|2011|11|lc=true|post=.}}[https://github.blog/2011-11-01-introducing-github-enterprise/ Introducing GitHub Enterprise] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042228/https://github.blog/2011-11-01-introducing-github-enterprise/ |date=March 22, 2021 }} GitHub In November 2020, source code for GitHub Enterprise Server was leaked online in an apparent protest against DMCA takedown of youtube-dl. According to GitHub, the source code came from GitHub accidentally sharing the code with Enterprise customers themselves, not from an attack on GitHub servers.{{Cite web|last=Salter|first=Jim|date=2020-11-05|title=GitHub's source code was leaked on GitHub last night... sort of|url=https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2020/11/githubs-source-code-was-leaked-on-github-last-night-sort-of/|access-date=2020-11-06|website=Ars Technica|language=en-us|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042302/https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2020/11/githubs-source-code-was-leaked-on-github-last-night-sort-of/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Cimpanu|first=Catalin|title=GitHub denies getting hacked|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/github-denies-getting-hacked/|access-date=2020-11-06|website=ZDNet|language=en|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042249/https://www.zdnet.com/article/github-denies-getting-hacked/|url-status=live}}

In 2008, GitHub introduced GitHub Pages, a static web hosting service for blogs, project documentation,{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OhdOBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA66|title=Introducing GitHub: A Non-Technical Guide|last1=Bell|first1=Peter|last2=Beer|first2=Brent|date=2014-11-11|publisher="O'Reilly Media, Inc."|isbn=9781491949832|language=en|access-date=June 15, 2019|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801224627/https://books.google.com/books?id=OhdOBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA66|url-status=live}}{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E9dOCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA125|title=GitHub Essentials|last=Pipinellis|first=Achilleas|date=2015-09-30|publisher=Packt Publishing Ltd|isbn=9781783553723|language=en|access-date=June 15, 2019|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801224635/https://books.google.com/books?id=E9dOCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA125|url-status=live}} and books.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8nm0DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA88|title=bookdown: Authoring Books and Technical Documents with R Markdown|last=Xie|first=Yihui|date=2016-12-12|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=9781351792608|language=en|access-date=June 15, 2019|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801234724/https://books.google.com/books?id=8nm0DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA88|url-status=live}} All GitHub Pages content is stored in a Git repository as files served to visitors verbatim or in Markdown format. GitHub is integrated with Jekyll static website and blog generator and GitHub continuous integration pipelines. Each time the content source is updated, Jekyll regenerates the website and automatically serves it via GitHub Pages infrastructure.{{Cite web|url=https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/08/build-blog-jekyll-github-pages/|title=Build A Blog With Jekyll And GitHub Pages|date=2014-08-01|website=Smashing Magazine|language=en|access-date=2019-06-15|archive-date=December 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201207120900/https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2014/08/build-blog-jekyll-github-pages/|url-status=live}}

Like the rest of GitHub, it includes free and paid service tiers. Websites generated through this service are hosted either as subdomains of the github.io domain or can be connected to custom domains bought through a third-party domain name registrar.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WwJwDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA340|title=Ubuntu Server Cookbook|last=Sawant|first=Uday R.|date=2016-06-30|publisher=Packt Publishing Ltd|isbn=9781785887987|language=en|access-date=June 15, 2019|archive-date=August 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801224628/https://books.google.com/books?id=WwJwDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA340|url-status=live}} GitHub Pages supports HTTPS encryption.All GitHub Pages sites, including sites correctly configured with a custom domain, support HTTPS and HTTPS enforcement.{{cite web |url=https://help.github.com/en/github/working-with-github-pages/securing-your-github-pages-site-with-https |title=Securing your GitHub Pages site with HTTPS |website=help.github.com |publisher=GitHub |access-date=2020-06-01 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042317/https://docs.github.com/en/github/working-with-github-pages/securing-your-github-pages-site-with-https |url-status=live }}Custom domains on GitHub Pages gain support for HTTPS.{{cite web |url=https://github.blog/2018-05-01-github-pages-custom-domains-https |title=Custom domains on GitHub Pages gain support for HTTPS |first=Parker |last=Moore |date=2018-05-01 |website=github.blog |publisher=GitHub |access-date=2020-06-01 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042231/https://github.blog/2018-05-01-github-pages-custom-domains-https/ |url-status=live }}

GitHub Actions was officially launched on November 13, 2019. It was first announced in October 2018 at GitHub Universe as a way to automate workflows, but the full general availability (GA) release came a year later in 2019. GitHub Actions,{{Cite web|title=What is GitHub Actions? • GitHub Actions|url=https://resources.github.com/downloads/What-is-GitHub.Actions_.Benefits-and-examples.pdf|access-date=2021-12-06|website=GitHub|language=en|archive-date=December 3, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211203130324/https://resources.github.com/downloads/What-is-GitHub.Actions_.Benefits-and-examples.pdf|url-status=live}} which allows building continuous integration and continuous deployment pipelines for testing, releasing and deploying software without the use of third-party websites/platforms. Unlike many other CI/CD tools, GitHub Actions launched with a marketplace where developers could share and reuse prebuilt actions (e.g., testing, linting, deployments). GitHub wanted to reduce reliance on third-party services and keep developers within the GitHub ecosystem. GitHub Actions provided hosted runners (Linux, Windows, macOS) that could dynamically scale, eliminating the need for self-managed build servers.

GitHub also operates a pastebin-style site called Gist, which is for code snippets, as opposed to GitHub proper, which is usually used for larger projects. Tom Preston-Werner débuted the feature at a Ruby conference in 2008.{{cite conference |title = God's memory leak – a scientific treatment |author-link = Tom Preston-Werner |first = Tom |last = Preston-Werner |url = https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/god-rb/Acyit8SlgcI |date = July 20, 2008 |conference = RubyFringe |conference-url = https://unspace.ca/rubyfringe/ |access-date = October 21, 2014 |quote = He previewed the upcoming git feature gist |archive-date = January 22, 2011 |archive-url = http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20110122130054/https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/god-rb/Acyit8SlgcI |url-status = live }}

Gist builds on the traditional simple concept of a pastebin by adding version control for code snippets, easy forking, and TLS encryption for private pastes. Because each "gist" is its own Git repository, multiple code snippets can be contained in a single page, and they can be pushed and pulled using Git.{{Cite web|title=Creating gists|url=https://docs.github.com/en/github/writing-on-github/editing-and-sharing-content-with-gists/creating-gists|access-date=2021-12-25|website=GitHub Docs|language=en|archive-date=December 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211225194455/https://docs.github.com/en/github/writing-on-github/editing-and-sharing-content-with-gists/creating-gists|url-status=live}}

Unregistered users could upload Gists until March 19, 2018, when uploading Gists was restricted to logged-in users, reportedly to mitigate spamming on the page of recent Gists.{{Cite web|date=2018-02-18|title=Deprecation Notice: Removing Anonymous Gist Creation|url=https://github.blog/2018-02-18-deprecation-notice-removing-anonymous-gist-creation/|access-date=2020-09-30|website=The GitHub Blog |archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042244/https://github.blog/2018-02-18-deprecation-notice-removing-anonymous-gist-creation/|url-status=live}}

Gists' URLs use hexadecimal IDs, and edits to Gists are recorded in a revision history, which can show the text difference of thirty revisions per page with an option between a "split" and "unified" view. Like repositories, Gists can be forked, "starred", i.e., publicly bookmarked, and commented on. The count of revisions, stars, and forks is indicated on the gist page.{{Cite web|url=https://gist.github.com/shaunlebron/746476e6e7a4d698b373/revisions|title=Build software better, together|access-date=November 20, 2021|archive-date=November 20, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211120232151/https://gist.github.com/shaunlebron/746476e6e7a4d698b373/revisions|url-status=live}}

GitHub launched a new program called the GitHub Student Developer Pack to give students free access to more than a dozen popular development tools and services. GitHub partnered with Bitnami, Crowdflower, DigitalOcean, DNSimple, HackHands, Namecheap, Orchestrate, Screenhero, SendGrid, Stripe, Travis CI, and Unreal Engine to launch the program.{{cite news|first=Frederic|last=Lardinois|work=TechCrunch|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/10/07/github-partners-with-digital-ocean-unreal-engine-and-others-to-give-students-free-access-to-developer-tools/|title=GitHub Partners With Digital Ocean, Unreal Engine, Others To Give Students Free Access To Developer Tools|date=October 7, 2014|access-date=October 7, 2014|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042209/https://techcrunch.com/2014/10/07/github-partners-with-digital-ocean-unreal-engine-and-others-to-give-students-free-access-to-developer-tools/|url-status=live}}

In 2016, GitHub announced the launch of the GitHub Campus Experts program{{cite web|url=https://github.blog/2016-06-25-github-campus-experts-technology-leadership-at-your-school/|title=GitHub Campus Experts – Technology leadership at your school|date=2016-06-25|website=The GitHub Blog|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-22|archive-date=January 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190123010650/https://github.blog/2016-06-25-github-campus-experts-technology-leadership-at-your-school/|url-status=live}} to train and encourage students to grow technology communities at their universities. The Campus Experts program is open to university students 18 years and older worldwide.{{cite web|url=https://education.github.com/experts|title=GitHub Campus Experts|website=GitHub Education|access-date=2019-01-22|archive-date=April 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210422172834/https://education.github.com/experts|url-status=live}} GitHub Campus Experts are one of the primary ways that GitHub funds student-oriented events and communities, Campus Experts are given access to training, funding, and additional resources to run events and grow their communities. To become a Campus Expert, applicants must complete an online training course with multiple modules to develop community leadership skills.

GitHub also provides some software as a service (SaaS) integrations for adding extra features to projects. Those services include:

• Waffle.io: project management for software teams, which allows users to automatically see pull requests, automated builds, reviews, and deployments across repositories.{{Cite web |last=Doerrfeld |first=Bill |date=August 15, 2022 |title=How to put GitHub Actions to work for your software team |url=https://techbeacon.com/app-dev-testing/how-put-github-actions-work-your-software-team |access-date=August 16, 2022 |archive-date=August 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816000341/https://techbeacon.com/app-dev-testing/how-put-github-actions-work-your-software-team |url-status=live }}
• Rollbar: provides real-time debugging tools and full-stack exception reporting.{{Cite web |date=2022-04-27 |title=Rollbar Provides New and Updated Software Development Kits |url=https://www.dbta.com/Editorial/News-Flashes/Rollbar-Provides-New-and-Updated-Software-Development-Kits-152657.aspx |access-date=2022-08-15 |website=Database Trends and Applications |language=en-US |archive-date=August 16, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220816000340/https://www.dbta.com/Editorial/News-Flashes/Rollbar-Provides-New-and-Updated-Software-Development-Kits-152657.aspx |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=Former Lolapps Engineers Launch Rollbar, An Error-Tracking Platform For Developers That Has A Sense Of History |url=https://techcrunch.com/2013/02/26/former-lolapps-engineers-launch-rollbar-an-error-tracking-platform-for-developers-that-has-a-sense-of-history/ |access-date=2022-08-15 |website=TechCrunch |date=February 26, 2013 |language=en-US |archive-date=January 17, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117060025/https://techcrunch.com/2013/02/26/former-lolapps-engineers-launch-rollbar-an-error-tracking-platform-for-developers-that-has-a-sense-of-history/ |url-status=live }}
• Codebeat: automated code analysis for web and mobile developers.{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}
• Travis CI: continuous integration service.{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}
• GitLocalize: provides utilities to manage project translation and internationalisation.{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}

GitHub Sponsors allows users to make monthly money donations to projects hosted on GitHub.{{Cite web |url=https://github.com/sponsors |title=GitHub Sponsors |website=GitHub |access-date=May 24, 2019 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042235/https://github.com/sponsors |url-status=live }} The public beta was announced on May 23, 2019, and the project accepts waitlist registrations. The Verge said that GitHub Sponsors "works exactly like Patreon" because "developers can offer various funding tiers that come with different perks, and they'll receive recurring payments from supporters who want to access them and encourage their work" except with "zero fees to use the program." Furthermore, GitHub offers incentives for early adopters during the first year: it pledges to cover payment processing costs and match sponsorship payments up to $5,000 per developer. Furthermore, users can still use similar services like Patreon and Open Collective and link to their websites.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/23/18637344/github-sponsors-patreon-style-crowdfunding-open-source|title=GitHub launches Sponsors, a Patreon-style funding tool for developers|last=Kastrenakes|first=Jacob|date=2019-05-23|website=The Verge|access-date=2019-05-24|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042246/https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/23/18637344/github-sponsors-patreon-style-crowdfunding-open-source|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://github.blog/2019-05-23-announcing-github-sponsors-a-new-way-to-contribute-to-open-source/|title=Announcing GitHub Sponsors: a new way to contribute to open source|date=2019-05-23|website=The GitHub Blog|language=en-US|access-date=2019-05-24|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042246/https://github.blog/2019-05-23-announcing-github-sponsors-a-new-way-to-contribute-to-open-source/|url-status=live}}

{{main|GitHub Archive Program}}

In July 2020, GitHub stored a February archive of the site{{Cite web|date=2020-07-16|title=GitHub Archive Program: the journey of the world's open source code to the Arctic|url=https://github.blog/2020-07-16-github-archive-program-the-journey-of-the-worlds-open-source-code-to-the-arctic/|access-date=2020-07-18|website=The GitHub Blog|language=en-US|archive-date=November 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201107021412/https://github.blog/2020-07-16-github-archive-program-the-journey-of-the-worlds-open-source-code-to-the-arctic/|url-status=live}} in an abandoned mountain mine in Svalbard, Norway, part of the Arctic World Archive and not far from the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. The archive contained the code of all active public repositories, as well as that of dormant but significant public repositories. The 21TB of data was stored on piqlFilm archival film reels as matrix (2D) barcode (Boxing barcode), and is expected to last 500–1,000 years.{{Cite web|title=GitHub Has Stored Its Code in an Arctic Vault It Hopes Will Last 1,000 Years|url=https://gizmodo.com/github-has-stored-its-code-in-an-arctic-vault-it-hopes-1844420340|access-date=2020-07-18|website=Gizmodo|date=July 17, 2020 |language=en-us|archive-date=October 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201008022102/https://gizmodo.com/github-has-stored-its-code-in-an-arctic-vault-it-hopes-1844420340|url-status=live}}{{Cite web |title=GitHub, the world's largest open-source software site, just had mounds of data stored in the permafrost chamber of an old coal mine deep in an Arctic mountain for 1,000 years |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/github-the-worlds-largest-open-source-software-site-just-had-mounds-of-data-stored-in-the-permafrost-chamber-of-an-old-coal-mine-deep-in-an-arctic-mountain-for-1000-years/ar-BB16U75c |date=2020-07-18 |website=MSN |publisher=Microsoft |first=Katie |last=Canales |access-date=July 18, 2020 |archive-date=October 9, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009010534/https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/github-the-worlds-largest-open-source-software-site-just-had-mounds-of-data-stored-in-the-permafrost-chamber-of-an-old-coal-mine-deep-in-an-arctic-mountain-for-1000-years/ar-BB16U75c |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |title=21 Terabytes of Open Source Code Is Now Stored in an Arctic Vault |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/21-terabytes-of-open-source-code-is-now-stored-in-an-arctic-vault/ |website=Vice.com |publisher=Vice Media |first=Kevin |last=Truong |date=17 July 2020 |access-date=July 18, 2020 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042248/https://www.vice.com/en/article/m7jpab/21-terabytes-of-open-source-code-is-now-stored-in-an-arctic-vault |url-status=live }}{{cite web| title=Buried deep in the ice is the GitHub code vault| first=Nate| last=Byrne| website=ABC News| publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation| date=12 August 2020| url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-13/github-code-vault-in-artic-svalbard-safeguards-against-calamity/12517948| access-date=13 August 2020| archive-date=November 15, 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201115015832/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-13/github-code-vault-in-artic-svalbard-safeguards-against-calamity/12517948| url-status=live}}

The GitHub Archive Program is also working with partners on Project Silica, in an attempt to store all public repositories for 10,000 years. It aims to write archives into the molecular structure of quartz glass platters, using a high-precision petahertz pulse laser, i.e. one that pulses a quadrillion (1,000,000,000,000,000) times per second.

{{criticism section|date=April 2021}}

In March 2014, GitHub programmer Julie Ann Horvath alleged that founder and CEO Tom Preston-Werner and his wife, Theresa, engaged in a pattern of harassment against her that led to her leaving the company.{{cite web|url=http://valleywag.gawker.com/meet-the-married-duo-behind-techs-biggest-new-harassme-1545685104|title=Meet the Married Duo Behind Tech's Biggest New Harassment Scandal|last1=Biddle|first1=Sam|last2=Tiku|first2=Nitasha|date=March 17, 2014|publisher=Gawker|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140317225437/http://valleywag.gawker.com/meet-the-married-duo-behind-techs-biggest-new-harassme-1545685104|archive-date=March 17, 2014|url-status=dead|access-date=March 17, 2014|newspaper=Vallywag|df=dmy}} In April 2014, GitHub released a statement denying Horvath's allegations.{{Cite web |date=2014-04-22 |title=Results of the GitHub Investigation |url=https://github.blog/2014-04-21-results-of-the-github-investigation/ |access-date=2022-07-13 |website=The GitHub Blog |language=en-US |archive-date=July 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713181543/https://github.blog/2014-04-21-results-of-the-github-investigation/ |url-status=live }}{{cite web|url=https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/21/github-founder-resigns-after-investigation/?_php=true&_type=blogs&hp&_r=0|title=GitHub Founder Resigns After Investigation|last=Miller|first=Claire Cain|date=April 21, 2014|work=Bits|publisher=The New York Times|access-date=February 13, 2018|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042210/https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/21/github-founder-resigns-after-investigation/?_php=true&_type=blogs&hp=&_r=0|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/04/21/github-denies-allegations-of-gender-based-harassment-co-founder-preston-werner-resigns/|title=GitHub Denies Allegations Of "Gender-Based Harassment," Co-Founder Preston-Werner Resigns|last=Wilhelm|first=Alex|date=April 21, 2014|work=TechCrunch|access-date=June 25, 2017|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042238/https://techcrunch.com/2014/04/21/github-denies-allegations-of-gender-based-harassment-co-founder-preston-werner-resigns/|url-status=live}} However, following an internal investigation, GitHub confirmed the claims. GitHub's CEO Chris Wanstrath wrote on the company blog, "The investigation found Tom Preston-Werner in his capacity as GitHub's CEO acted inappropriately, including confrontational conduct, disregard of workplace complaints, insensitivity to the impact of his spouse's presence in the workplace, and failure to enforce an agreement that his spouse should not work in the office."{{cite web|url=https://github.com/blog/1826-follow-up-to-the-investigation-results|title=Follow up to the investigation results|website=GitHub|date=April 28, 2014|access-date=November 11, 2014|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042211/https://github.blog/2014-04-28-follow-up-to-the-investigation-results/|url-status=live}} Preston-Werner subsequently resigned from the company.{{Cite magazine|last=McMillan|first=Robert|date=2014-04-21|title=GitHub Founder Steps Down After Harassment Probe|magazine=Wired|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/04/tom-pw/|access-date=2020-10-12|issn=1059-1028|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042246/https://www.wired.com/2014/04/tom-pw/|url-status=live}} The firm then announced it would implement new initiatives and trainings "to make sure employee concerns and conflicts are taken seriously and dealt with appropriately."

On July 25, 2019, a developer based in Iran wrote on Medium that GitHub had blocked his private repositories and prohibited access to GitHub pages.{{Cite web|url=https://medium.com/@hamed/github-blocked-my-account-and-they-think-im-developing-nuclear-weapons-e7e1fe62cb74|title=GitHub blocked my account and they think I'm developing nuclear weapons|last=Saeedi Fard|first=Hamed|date=2019-07-29|website=Medium|language=en|access-date=2019-08-12|archive-date=August 11, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190811143236/https://medium.com/@hamed/github-blocked-my-account-and-they-think-im-developing-nuclear-weapons-e7e1fe62cb74|url-status=live}} Soon after, GitHub confirmed that it was now blocking developers in Iran, Crimea, Cuba, North Korea, and Syria from accessing private repositories.{{Cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/07/29/github-ban-sanctioned-countries/|title=GitHub confirms it has blocked developers in Iran, Syria and Crimea|website=TechCrunch|date=July 29, 2019|language=en-US|access-date=2019-08-10|archive-date=January 17, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117060041/https://techcrunch.com/2019/07/29/github-ban-sanctioned-countries/|url-status=live}} However, GitHub reopened access to GitHub Pages days later, for public repositories regardless of location. It was also revealed that using GitHub while visiting sanctioned countries could result in similar actions occurring on a user's account. GitHub responded to complaints and the media through a spokesperson, saying:

GitHub is subject to US trade control laws, and is committed to full compliance with applicable law. At the same time, GitHub's vision is to be the global platform for developer collaboration, no matter where developers reside. As a result, we take seriously our responsibility to examine government mandates thoroughly to be certain that users and customers are not impacted beyond what is required by law. This includes keeping public repositories services, including those for open source projects, available and accessible to support personal communications involving developers in sanctioned regions.{{Cite web|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/github-starts-blocking-developers-in-countries-facing-us-trade-sanctions/|title=GitHub starts blocking developers in countries facing US trade sanctions|last=Tung|first=Liam|website=ZDNet|language=en|access-date=2019-08-10|archive-date=September 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924024105/https://www.zdnet.com/article/github-starts-blocking-developers-in-countries-facing-us-trade-sanctions/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/29/8934694/github-us-trade-sanctions-developers-restricted-crimea-cuba-iran-north-korea-syria|title=GitHub restricts developer accounts based in Iran, Crimea, and other countries under US sanctions|last=Porter|first=Jon|date=2019-07-29|website=The Verge|access-date=2019-08-10|archive-date=August 10, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190810062929/https://www.theverge.com/2019/7/29/8934694/github-us-trade-sanctions-developers-restricted-crimea-cuba-iran-north-korea-syria|url-status=live}}

Developers who feel that they should not have restrictions can appeal for the removal of said restrictions, including those who only travel to, and do not reside in, those countries. GitHub has forbidden the use of VPNs and IP proxies to access the site from sanctioned countries, as purchase history and IP addresses are how they flag users, among other sources.{{Cite web |title=GitHub and Trade Controls |url=https://help.github.com/en/articles/github-and-trade-controls |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190809091850/https://help.github.com/en/articles/github-and-trade-controls |archive-date=August 9, 2019 |access-date=2019-08-12 |website=GitHub Help}}

{{main|Censorship of GitHub}}On December 4, 2014, Russia blacklisted GitHub.com because GitHub initially refused to take down user-posted suicide manuals.{{cite news|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/03/github-russia/|title=Russia Blacklists, Blocks GitHub Over Pages That Refer to Suicide|work=TechCrunch|access-date=June 25, 2017|archive-date=July 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706170940/https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/03/github-russia/|url-status=live}} After a day, Russia withdrew its block,{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/12/rospotrebnadzor/|title=Russia's Creeping Descent Into Internet Censorship|last=McMillan|first=Robert|magazine=WIRED|access-date=June 3, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=June 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612171649/https://www.wired.com/2014/12/rospotrebnadzor/|url-status=live}} and GitHub began blocking specific content and pages in Russia.{{Cite web|title=To Get Off Russia's Blacklist, GitHub Has Blocked Access To Pages That Highlight Suicide|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/05/to-get-off-russias-blacklist-github-has-blocked-access-to-pages-that-highlight-suicide/|access-date=2020-10-12|website=TechCrunch|date=December 5, 2014|language=en-US|archive-date=January 17, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117060529/https://techcrunch.com/2014/12/05/to-get-off-russias-blacklist-github-has-blocked-access-to-pages-that-highlight-suicide/|url-status=live}} On December 31, 2014, India blocked GitHub.com along with 31 other websites over pro-ISIS content posted by users;{{cite web|url=https://thenextweb.com/in/2014/12/31/vimeo-github-30-sites-blocked-india-content-isis/|title=GitHub, Vimeo and 30 more sites blocked in India over content from ISIS|date=December 31, 2014|publisher=The Next Web|access-date=February 13, 2018|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043012/https://thenextweb.com/in/2014/12/31/vimeo-github-30-sites-blocked-india-content-isis/|url-status=live}} the block was lifted three days later.{{Cite web|last=Wright|first=Mic|date=2015-01-02|title=India Lifts Blocks On Github, Weebly, Dailymotion And Vimeo|url=https://thenextweb.com/in/2015/01/02/india-lifts-blocks-github-vimeo-dailymotion-weebly-others-remain-banned/|access-date=2020-10-12|website=The Next Web|language=en-us|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043020/https://thenextweb.com/in/2015/01/02/india-lifts-blocks-github-vimeo-dailymotion-weebly-others-remain-banned/|url-status=live}} On October 8, 2016, Turkey blocked GitHub to prevent email leakage of a hacked account belonging to the country's energy minister.{{cite web|url=https://www.siliconrepublic.com/enterprise/turkey-github-dropbox-onedrive-recep-tayyip-erdogan|title=Turkey blocked GitHub and Dropbox to hide leaks – reports|date=October 10, 2016|access-date=October 11, 2016|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043012/https://www.siliconrepublic.com/enterprise/turkey-github-dropbox-onedrive-recep-tayyip-erdogan|url-status=live}}

On March 26, 2015, a large-scale DDoS attack was launched against GitHub.com that lasted for just under five days.{{cite web|url=https://github.com/blog/1981-large-scale-ddos-attack-on-github-com|title=Large Scale DDoS Attack on github.com|date=March 27, 2015|publisher=GitHub|access-date=March 31, 2015|archive-date=March 28, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150328034203/https://github.com/blog/1981-large-scale-ddos-attack-on-github-com|url-status=live}} The attack, which appeared to originate from China, primarily targeted GitHub-hosted user content describing methods of circumventing Internet censorship.{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2015/3/27/8299555/github-china-ddos-censorship-great-firewall|title=Last night, GitHub was hit with massive denial-of-service attack from China|date=March 27, 2015|website=The Verge|access-date=March 27, 2015|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043021/https://www.theverge.com/2015/3/27/8299555/github-china-ddos-censorship-great-firewall|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-coding-website-github-hit-with-cyberattack-1427638940|title=U.S. Coding Website GitHub Hit With Cyberattack|date=March 29, 2015|website=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=March 29, 2015|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043011/https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-coding-website-github-hit-with-cyberattack-1427638940|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://arstechnica.com/security/2015/03/massive-denial-of-service-attack-on-github-tied-to-chinese-government/|title=Massive denial-of-service attack on GitHub tied to Chinese government|date=March 31, 2015|website=Ars Technica|access-date=April 1, 2015|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043017/https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2015/03/massive-denial-of-service-attack-on-github-tied-to-chinese-government/|url-status=live}}

On April 19, 2020, Chinese police detained Chen Mei and Cai Wei (volunteers for Terminus 2049, a project hosted on GitHub), and accused them of "picking quarrels and provoking trouble." Cai and Chen archived news articles, interviews, and other materials published on Chinese media outlets and social media platforms that have been removed by censors in China.{{cite web |last1= Human Rights Watch | title= China: Free Covid-19 Activists, 'Citizen Journalists' | date= April 27, 2020 |url= https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/04/27/china-free-covid-19-activists-citizen-journalists|access-date=27 August 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200827224311/https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/04/27/china-free-covid-19-activists-citizen-journalists | archive-date=27 August 2020}}

{{See also|Microsoft and unions#United States}}

GitHub has a $200,000 contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for the use of their on-site product GitHub Enterprise Server. This contract was renewed in 2019, despite internal opposition from many GitHub employees. In an email sent to employees, later posted to the GitHub blog on October 9, 2019, CEO Nat Friedman stated, "The revenue from the purchase is less than $200,000 and not financially material for our company." He announced that GitHub had pledged to donate $500,000 to "nonprofit groups supporting immigrant communities targeted by the current administration."{{cite web |title=GitHub and US Government developers |url=https://github.blog/2019-10-09-github-and-us-government-developers/ |website=The GitHub Blog |publisher=GitHub |date=9 October 2019 |access-date=October 10, 2019 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322042959/https://github.blog/2019-10-09-github-and-us-government-developers/ |url-status=live }} In response, at least 150 GitHub employees signed an open letter re-stating their opposition to the contract, and denouncing alleged human rights abuses by ICE. {{As of|2019|11|13|df=US|post=,}} five workers had resigned over the contract.{{cite web |title=As GitHub's Conference Begins, Five Employees Resign Over ICE Contract |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/as-githubs-conference-begins-five-employees-resign-over-protest-ice-contract/ |website=Vice |language=en |date=13 November 2019 |access-date=November 15, 2019 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043012/https://www.vice.com/en/article/evjwwp/as-githubs-conference-begins-five-employees-resign-over-protest-ice-contract |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Ghaffary |first1=Shirin |title=GitHub is the latest tech company to face controversy over its contracts with ICE |url=https://www.vox.com/recode/2019/10/9/20906605/github-ice-contract-immigration-ice-dan-friedman |website=Vox |language=en |date=9 October 2019 |access-date=November 15, 2019 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043021/https://www.vox.com/recode/2019/10/9/20906605/github-ice-contract-immigration-ice-dan-friedman |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Letter from GitHub employees to CEO about the company's ICE contract |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/context/letter-from-github-employees-to-ceo-about-the-company-s-ice-contract/fb280de9-2bc3-40d5-b1a5-e3b954bf0d25/ |date=Oct 9, 2019 |newspaper=The Washington Post |language=en |access-date=November 15, 2019 |archive-date=March 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043039/https://www.washingtonpost.com/context/letter-from-github-employees-to-ceo-about-the-company-s-ice-contract/fb280de9-2bc3-40d5-b1a5-e3b954bf0d25/ |url-status=live }}

The ICE contract dispute came into focus again in June 2020 due to the company's decision to abandon "master/slave" branch terminology, spurred by the George Floyd protests and Black Lives Matter movement.{{Cite news|date=2020-06-15|title=GitHub abandons 'master' term to avoid slavery row |language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-53050955|access-date=2020-07-01|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043006/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-53050955|url-status=live}} Detractors of GitHub describe the branch renaming to be a form of performative activism and have urged GitHub to cancel their ICE contract instead.{{Cite web|date=2020-06-13|title=After GitHub CEO backs Black Lives Matter, workers demand an end to ICE contract|url=https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2020-06-12/github-ceo-black-lives-matter-employees-demand-end-ice-contract |first1=Suhauna |last1=Hussain |first2=Johana |last2=Bhuiyan |access-date=2020-07-01|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043014/https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/story/2020-06-12/github-ceo-black-lives-matter-employees-demand-end-ice-contract|url-status=live}} An open letter from members of the open source community was shared on GitHub in December 2019, demanding that the company drop its contract with ICE and provide more transparency into how they conduct business and partnerships. The letter has been signed by more than 700 people.{{Cite web|title=The Open Source Community Is Calling on Github to 'Drop ICE'|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/open-source-community-changing-github-avatars-drop-ice/|access-date=2020-10-19|website=Vice |first1=Kevin |last1=Truong |date=20 July 2020 |language=en|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043019/https://www.vice.com/en/article/m7jpgy/open-source-community-changing-github-avatars-drop-ice|url-status=live}}

In January 2021, GitHub fired one of its employees after he expressed concern for colleagues following the January 6 United States Capitol attack, calling some of the rioters "Nazis".{{Cite web|last=Chan|first=Rosalie|title=EXCLUSIVE: GitHub is facing employee backlash after the firing of a Jewish employee who suggested 'Nazis are about' on the day of the US Capitol siege|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-github-backlash-jewish-employee-termination-2021-1 |date=Jan 12, 2021 |access-date=2021-01-18|website=Business Insider|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043002/https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-github-backlash-jewish-employee-termination-2021-1|url-status=live}} After an investigation, GitHub's COO said there were "significant errors of judgment and procedure" with the company's decision to fire the employee. As a result of the investigation, GitHub reached out to the employee, and the company's head of human resources resigned.{{Cite web|title=Fired GitHub employee who warned co-workers about Nazis is seeking legal counsel|url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/15/fired-github-employee-who-warned-coworkers-about-nazis-is-seeking-legal-counsel/ |first1=Megan Rose |last1=Dickey |access-date=2021-01-18|website=TechCrunch|date=January 15, 2021 |language=en-US|archive-date=March 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210322043026/https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/15/fired-github-employee-who-warned-coworkers-about-nazis-is-seeking-legal-counsel/|url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Higgins-Dunn |first=Noah |date=2021-01-17 |title=GitHub head of HR resigns after investigation into firing of Jewish employee over Capitol riot comments |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/17/github-hr-head-resigns-after-investigation-of-firing-jewish-employee.html |access-date=2021-01-18 |publisher=CNBC |language=en |archive-date=January 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118091024/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/17/github-hr-head-resigns-after-investigation-of-firing-jewish-employee.html |url-status=live }}

In 2023, parts of the social media platform Twitter were uploaded onto GitHub. The leak was first reported by the New York Times and was part of a legal filing Twitter submitted to the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Twitter claimed that the postings infringed on copyright property owned by them, and asked the court for information to identify the user who posted the source code to GitHub, under the username "FreeSpeechEnthusiast".{{Cite web |last=D'Innocenzio |first=Anne |date=2023-03-27 |title=Twitter hunts Github user who posted source code online |url=https://apnews.com/article/twitter-source-code-github-leak-3e79927806911f9ee112b0383b51102a |access-date=2023-03-27 |publisher=AP News |language=en }}

In 2012, Linus Torvalds, the original developer of Git, highly praised GitHub, stating, "The hosting of github{{sic}} is excellent. They've done a good job on that. I think GitHub should be commended enormously for making open source project hosting so easy." However, he also sharply criticized the implementation of GitHub's merging interface, saying, "Git comes with a nice pull-request generation module, but GitHub instead decided to replace it with their own totally inferior version. As a result, I consider GitHub useless for these kinds of things. It's fine for hosting, but the pull requests and the online commit editing, are just pure garbage."{{Cite magazine |last=McMillan |first=Robert |date=2012-05-11 |title=Linus Torvalds Invented Git, But He Pulls No Patches With GitHub |url=https://www.wired.com/2012/05/torvalds-github/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211205182545/https://www.wired.com/2012/05/torvalds-github/ |archive-date=December 5, 2021 |access-date=2022-01-27 |magazine=Wired |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028}}{{Cite web |last=Tim Anderson |date=2021-09-06 |title=GitHub merges 'useless garbage' says Linus Torvalds as new NTFS support added to Linux kernel 5.15 |url=https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/06/github_merges_useless_garbage_says/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220127204556/https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/06/github_merges_useless_garbage_says/ |archive-date=January 27, 2022 |access-date=2022-01-27 |website=The Register |language=en}}

{{Portal|Computer programming|Free and open-source software}}

• Collaborative innovation network
• Collaborative intelligence
• Commons-based peer production
• Comparison of source code hosting facilities
• DevOps
• Gitea
• GitLab
• Codeberg
• Timeline of GitHub
• GitHub Copilot
• Replit

{{reflist}}

{{Wikidata property|1=P2037}}

{{Commons category}}

• {{Official website}}

{{Microsoft}}

{{Microsoft FOSS}}

{{Bug tracking systems}}

Category:2018 mergers and acquisitions

Category:Bug and issue tracking software

Category:Cloud computing providers

Category:Collaborative projects

Category:Computing websites

Category:Cross-platform software

Category:Internet properties established in 2008

Category:Microsoft acquisitions

Category:Microsoft subsidiaries

Category:Microsoft websites

Category:Open-source software hosting facilities

Category:Project management software

Category:Remote companies

Category:Git repository hosting websites