Claude Code barred to minors, Qwen Code goes paid, and Opus 4.7 uses 30% more tokens

It was a rich week for AI tools news: Anthropic introduced age restrictions for Claude Code, Alibaba moved Qwen Code to a paid model, OpenAI expanded Codex capabilities, and the release of Opus 4.7 raised questions about the growing cost of using top-tier models. Claude Code closed for minors Anthropic updated the Claude Code user agreement — the service now requires age verification.

Users under 18 cannot use the tool without additional permission from parents or guardians. The step makes sense in the context of growing regulatory pressure: the COPPA law in the US and similar initiatives in the EU force AI companies to build protection for minors. The phrase "requires a passport" is colloquial, but the essence is accurate: age verification has become mandatory.

Qwen Code: the end of the free era Alibaba ended the free period of Qwen Code — an AI assistant for programming based on the Qwen model. The service transitions to a paid model. Exact pricing has not yet been disclosed, but this is a signal: major providers are moving away from the logic of "attract first, monetize later."

Qwen Code competed with GitHub Copilot and Cursor precisely because of free access to a powerful model. Now that argument disappears, and users will need to weigh what is more beneficial. Codex: works with any applications OpenAI expanded Codex capabilities — an AI agent for development.

The key update: the agent can now manage the computer directly, interacting with virtually any application through the GUI. Previously, Codex worked primarily in the terminal and with the file system. Now it can open a browser, click on interfaces, and work with desktop applications — this is a step toward a full-fledged computer agent, not just code completion.

The update puts Codex in the same category as Anthropic Computer Use and Microsoft Copilot in agent control mode. Opus 4.7: more capabilities, more tokens Anthropic released Opus 4.

7 — an update to the flagship model. The key characteristic that users immediately noticed: the new version consumes 30% more input tokens than Opus 4.6.

This means increased costs for those using the model via API. In return — improved reasoning quality and expanded context handling capabilities. For Claude Code Max subscribers, the difference is less noticeable, but for API clients with intensive workloads, the update requires budget review.

What does it mean Four pieces of news from one week come together into a single trend: the free era of AI tools is ending, and leading players are simultaneously tightening access rules and raising the price bar. Age restrictions are regulatory necessity. Monetization of Qwen Code and increased token consumption in Opus 4.

7 is business. Codex expansion is a race for full-fledged computer agent status. For development teams, this is a moment to review the tool stack: what to use, what to subscribe to, and what to budget for.