Thomas Dohmke, the Chief Executive Officer of GitHub, has officially announced his decision to step down from his role by the end of 2025. In a heartfelt blog post, Dohmke shared that he intends to return to his entrepreneurial roots and “become a founder again,” marking the end of a transformative era for the Microsoft-owned platform.
Dohmke’s tenure as CEO began in late 2021, following the departure of Nat Friedman. He had previously joined Microsoft in 2015 after the acquisition of his startup, HockeyApp, and played a key role in GitHub’s integration into Microsoft after its $7.5 billion acquisition in 2018.
Under his leadership, GitHub evolved into a powerhouse of AI-driven developer tools. The platform now hosts over 1 billion repositories and forks, serves more than 150 million developers, and has seen its AI-related projects double in the past year alone. GitHub Copilot, the company’s flagship AI assistant, has grown to over 20 million users, becoming a market leader in AI-powered coding.
Dohmke’s departure coincides with a significant organizational restructuring. Microsoft has decided not to appoint a direct successor. Instead, GitHub’s leadership team will now report to multiple executives within Microsoft’s newly formed CoreAI division, led by former Meta executive Jay Parikh.
This move signals a deeper integration of GitHub into Microsoft’s broader AI strategy. CoreAI is tasked with scaling existing AI tools and developing new ones, and GitHub is expected to play a central role in this mission. The restructuring is seen as a shift away from GitHub’s previously semi-autonomous status, aligning it more closely with Microsoft’s enterprise and cloud ecosystems.
While GitHub remains a dominant force, the timing of Dohmke’s exit comes amid rising competition from companies like Google, Cursor, and other emerging startups in the AI developer tools space. These rivals are rapidly innovating, challenging GitHub’s lead in the market
Dohmke will remain with GitHub through the end of 2025 to ensure a smooth transition. His departure marks not just a leadership change but a strategic pivot for GitHub as it becomes more deeply embedded in Microsoft’s AI ambitions.
Reflecting on his journey, Dohmke wrote:
We’ve made it possible for anyone, no matter what language they speak or how fluent they are in programming to take their spark of creativity and transform it into something real. I am more convinced than ever that the world will soon see one billion developers enabled by billions of AI agents.
As GitHub enters this new chapter, the tech world will be watching closely to see how Microsoft steers the platform amid growing competition and evolving developer needs.
