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Integrate with GitHub Copilot CLI

Configure GitHub Copilot CLI to use DeepSeek V4 models via BYOK (Bring Your Own Key) with the Anthropic-compatible endpoint.

Important: Use anthropic as the provider type. The openai type triggers a 400 error: The reasoning_content in the thinking mode must be passed back to the API. — DeepSeek requires reasoning_content to be echoed back on subsequent requests, which Copilot CLI's OpenAI integration does not support. The Anthropic Messages API endpoint avoids this issue entirely.

1. Install GitHub Copilot CLI​

npm install -g @github/copilot

Requires Node.js 22 or later. See the official getting-started guide for details.

2. Get a DeepSeek API Key​

3. Configure Environment Variables​

Linux / Mac:

export COPILOT_PROVIDER_TYPE=anthropic
export COPILOT_PROVIDER_BASE_URL=https://api.deepseek.com/anthropic
export COPILOT_PROVIDER_API_KEY=sk-your-deepseek-api-key
export COPILOT_MODEL=deepseek-v4-pro

Windows (PowerShell):

$env:COPILOT_PROVIDER_TYPE="anthropic"
$env:COPILOT_PROVIDER_BASE_URL="https://api.deepseek.com/anthropic"
$env:COPILOT_PROVIDER_API_KEY="sk-your-deepseek-api-key"
$env:COPILOT_MODEL="deepseek-v4-pro"

Available models: deepseek-v4-pro, deepseek-v4-flash. Switch by changing COPILOT_MODEL.

4. Start Copilot CLI​

copilot

Full agent mode, tool calling, and MCP support — all powered by DeepSeek.

Optional: Token Limits​

Since deepseek-v4-pro is not in Copilot CLI's built-in model catalog, configure the token limits explicitly:

Linux / Mac:

export COPILOT_PROVIDER_MAX_PROMPT_TOKENS=840000
export COPILOT_PROVIDER_MAX_OUTPUT_TOKENS=128000

Windows (PowerShell):

$env:COPILOT_PROVIDER_MAX_PROMPT_TOKENS="840000"
$env:COPILOT_PROVIDER_MAX_OUTPUT_TOKENS="128000"

Run copilot help providers for all available environment variables.

Optional: Offline Mode​

Linux / Mac:

export COPILOT_OFFLINE=true

Windows (PowerShell):

$env:COPILOT_OFFLINE="true"

Note: your prompts still go to api.deepseek.com — offline mode only blocks GitHub's API calls.

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