Jon Galloway previews .NET Conf 2025, spotlighting the release of .NET 10, Visual Studio 2026, cloud-native and AI advancements, plus deep technical and community-driven learning opportunities for developers.

.NET Conf 2025: Launching .NET 10, Visual Studio 2026, and the Future of Cloud-Native and AI Development

By Jon Galloway

.NET Conf 2025 is nearly here, taking place November 11-13 as a free, virtual event for developers worldwide. The conference marks the release of .NET 10 and Visual Studio 2026 and features sessions led by Microsoft product teams, industry experts, and community leaders.

What to Expect

  • .NET 10 Official Launch: New C# 14 language features, performance improvements, updated web and cross-platform UI frameworks (Blazor, .NET MAUI), and modern cloud-native patterns with Aspire.
  • Visual Studio 2026 Deep Dives: Unveiling productivity enhancements, debugging improvements, Copilot-based AI tooling, and advanced testing tools.
  • Cloud-Native and Azure Focus: Specialized tracks on deploying .NET workloads to Azure, containers, Kubernetes, Azure Functions, and service integration.
  • AI and Agentic Development: Sessions on Microsoft Agent Framework, Model Context Protocol (MCP), Azure AI services, integrating AI into .NET apps, and leveraging Copilot for development workflows.
  • Security, DevOps, and Observability: In-depth content on secure application architectures, using Azure Key Vault and passkeys, GitHub Actions and DevOps practices, OpenTelemetry for observability, and vulnerability management.
  • Community and Student Tracks: Real-world demos and best practices from developers globally, a dedicated Student Zone on November 14th, and hands-on sessions for newcomers.

Event Highlights

Day One: .NET 10 Launch

  • Keynote: Led by Scott Hanselman and the .NET/Visual Studio team, covering major features in .NET 10—performance, new APIs, Blazor and ASP.NET Core improvements, C# 14, AI-powered productivity tools, and more.
  • Breakout Sessions:
    • What’s New in C# 14 (Dustin Campbell): Language improvements for code clarity and productivity.
    • Performance Improvements in .NET 10 (Stephen Toub): Deep dive into .NET runtime and library enhancements.
    • Build Better Web Apps with Blazor in .NET 10 (Daniel Roth): WebAuthN, diagnostics, and UI performance.
    • Aspire: Cloud-Native Development Simplified (Maddy Montaquila, Damian Edwards): Opinionated framework for distributed, observable, production-ready .NET solutions.
    • Understanding Agentic Development (Jeremy Likness): Patterns for building reasoning AI agents using agentic methodologies.
    • What’s New in .NET MAUI (David Ortinau): Improvements for cross-platform UI and mobile.
  • Code Party: Live engagement and community interaction, with opportunities to win prizes.

Day Two: Azure, Cloud, and Deep Dives

  • Azure Keynote: (Scott Hunter, Paul Yuknewicz): Azure Container Apps, Kubernetes Service, Functions, and AI services for .NET developers.
  • Technical Sessions:
    • Building remote MCP servers and integrating Redis with .NET.
    • Extending Aspire for custom dashboards and advanced integration (David Fowler, Damian Edwards).
    • Using AI Foundry and Copilot for advanced .NET testing and automation workflows.
    • Security investigations, NuGet updates, container optimizations, and best practices.

Day Three: Community Day

  • Live and YouTube Premiere Tracks:
    • Clean architecture in ASP.NET Core 10.
    • Complex migration case studies (e.g., Xamarin.Forms to .NET MAUI).
    • Observability via OpenTelemetry, security-first development, F# integration, and JSON parser migrations.
    • Real-world and innovative uses of .NET in domains from IoT to high-performance simulations.

Student Zone (November 14th)

  • Introductory content for students and newcomers: C# basics, .NET app building, AI, web/mobile/game development, with guidance from Microsoft experts.

How to Participate

  • Watch live at dotnetconf.net via YouTube or Twitch, or view session recordings afterwards.
  • Ask questions, chat live with session moderators, and download session demo code from GitHub.
  • Find local .NET Conf events in your area for in-person learning opportunities.

More Resources

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to learn directly from Microsoft engineers and .NET community leaders about what’s next for everything .NET and Visual Studio. Mark your calendars and get ready for .NET Conf 2025!

This post appeared first on “Microsoft .NET Blog”. Read the entire article here