What happened | Chat calls a dedicated image tool

On October 28, 2026, GitHub announced that Copilot chat can create and edit images through a separate image-generation tool, preview the results in the conversation and save them to a project. The announcement lists VS Code, the GitHub Copilot app and Copilot CLI as entry points. Features and availability

The feature is in public preview for Copilot Pro, Pro+, Business and Enterprise. Image usage is billed separately from the chat model: image tokens count toward the plan’s AI credits. Organization administrators can also disable the image model.

Why it matters | Keep the asset in the current task

Suppose you are building a registration page for a community book club and need an illustration of a desk. In the existing conversation, describe its purpose, composition and dimensions, then check whether the image suits the page. You can avoid reintroducing the whole task in another tool and manually bringing the image back.

If the first result is close, request a specific change, such as removing background objects to leave room for a heading. This is a suggested workflow. After the image is saved, you still need to connect the correct file to the page and check the small-screen layout. Saving a file does not mean the page is already using it.

How to use it | Check the file and the page

  1. Check availability. Open Copilot chat in one of the listed entry points. Confirm that your plan includes the public preview, your organization has not disabled image generation and you have sufficient image credits.
  2. Describe the asset in the current task. For example: “Create a landscape desk illustration for the book-club registration page, with a simple background and space on the right for a heading. Show a preview first.” State the intended use and composition.
  3. Check the preview and saved file. Ask Copilot to make changes, then inspect the image file in the project. To use it on the page, specify the placement and preview the actual page before calling it complete. The optional “Made with AI” watermark is off by default; enable it if needed. Generation, saving and watermark details