By 2030, as many as one billion individuals could be coding, thanks to pioneering initiatives by GitHub. The company unveiled Spark, a revolutionary AI-powered tool aimed at simplifying app creation for people of all ages, at its annual conference in San Francisco. GitHub also rolled out major enhancements to its Copilot virtual assistant.

GitHub’s CEO, Thomas Dohmke, highlighted Spark’s transformative potential. “Spark is designed to open software development to everyone, from children to the elderly,” he explained. Dohmke also addressed the language barriers in software creation and discussed GitHub’s strategy to overcome these challenges to reach a global audience.

Nearly two million developers in Australia, along with major banks and corporations seeking to leverage AI, already use GitHub. This week, these new tools will be made available to all subscribers, including educational institutions, at no additional cost.

Cassidy Williams, a software engineer at GitHub, targeted Apple developers at the convention’s kickoff. “Apple developers, we’re equipping you with new enhancements,” she declared, indicating improvements to Xcode that support a range of Apple devices.

Tim Rogers, a product manager at GitHub, outlined how Spark caters to both seasoned developers and beginners. It allows the former to adjust the application code and enables the latter to code in their native languages. Users can run their projects across multiple devices and share their work with specific access rights, fostering collaboration and innovation.

GitHub has also broadened its support to include leading AI models from Google Cloud’s Gemini and Anthropic, meeting the diverse needs of its developer community.

The acquisition of GitHub by Microsoft for $7.5 billion six years ago was aimed at integrating the open-source developer community into Microsoft’s expansive ecosystem. “Our mission is to build a more inclusive network in the AI age, benefiting all,” Dohmke stated, emphasizing GitHub’s commitment to fostering a collaborative and innovative global coding environment.