Daniel Afonso is a Senior Developer Advocate at PagerDuty, SolidJS DX team member, Instructor at Egghead.io, and Author of State Management with React Query. Daniel has a full-stack background, having worked with different languages and frameworks on various projects from IoT to Fraud Detection. He is passionate about learning and teaching and has spoken at multiple conferences around the world about topics he loves. In his free time, when he's not learning new technologies or writing about them, he's probably reading comics or watching superhero movies and shows.

Daniel Afonso is a Senior Developer Advocate at PagerDuty, SolidJS DX team member, Instructor at Egghead.io, and Author of State Management with React Query. Daniel has a full-stack background, having worked with different languages and frameworks on... Show more

Currently a Microsoft Data Platform MVP, Jared has been a data engineering consultant for over a decade, implementing Microsoft products. For more than three decades, he has been honing his skills in theater and other performing arts. As a speaker, Jared marries these two disciplines together, creating dynamic presentations that add entertainment to education. This symbiotic relationship can improve presentation engagement, support attendees in knowledge retention, and foster a culture of passion for the data industry.

As a speaker, Jared has spoken at events such as:
-FabCon Vegas and Atlanta
-DataCon Seattle (Microsoft Data Conference)
-PASS Summit
-SQL Saturdays, Multiple
-Microsoft Fabric Global Online Conference
-Future Data Driven Summit
-GroupBy Conference
-and more!

He also runs the YouTube channel DataBard, focused on making Data fun and teaching techniques along the way.

Technically-speaking, Jared has multiple Microsoft certifications in both on-prem and cloud technologies. He has extensive knowledge in:
-Microsoft Fabric
-SQL Query Development and Performance tuning
-Kimball Data Modeling
-ETL design patterns
-Azure SQL DB and Azure SQL MI

In his spare time, he continues to perform in community theater productions, as well as musically for his church. Upon request, he would be happy to assist with more theatrical portions of events, such as performing musical numbers.

Currently a Microsoft Data Platform MVP, Jared has been a data engineering consultant for over a decade, implementing Microsoft products. For more than three decades, he has been honing his skills in theater and other performing arts. As a speaker, J... Show more

Aicha Laafia, a Java software engineer at SQLI with a love for coding, an interest in sustainability, and a commitment to empowering women in tech.

I am a Women Techmakers and Girls Code ambassador, an Oracle ACE Associate, a member of the Moroccan Association of Computing Science, and part of the JetBrains Community Contributor program.

I focus on creating software with minimal environmental impact while mentoring and supporting women in technology.

When I’m not coding, I enjoy exploring delicious food, phone photography, and watching Formula 1.

Aicha Laafia, a Java software engineer at SQLI with a love for coding, an interest in sustainability, and a commitment to empowering women in tech. I am a Women Techmakers and Girls Code ambassador, an Oracle ACE Associate, a member of the Morocca... Show more

Pradumna Saraf is an Open Source Developer, Docker Captain, Microsoft MVP, and DevOps Professional. He works with Go, Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud infrastructure, with a strong focus on container security and building reliable, scalable systems.

He actively contributes to open source and has mentored hundreds of developers in getting started with open source and modern DevOps practices. Pradumna shares practical insights on X (formerly Twitter) and LinkedIn around DevOps, container security, and open source tools. He also enjoys speaking at meetups and events, focusing on real-world, hands-on learning.

Pradumna Saraf is an Open Source Developer, Docker Captain, Microsoft MVP, and DevOps Professional. He works with Go, Docker, Kubernetes, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud infrastructure, with a strong focus on container security and building reliable, scal... Show more

Climbing the technology mountain and halfway up the side. Experience in .Net, Auth, and API development. Dabbles in iOT & databases. Focusing on coding for humans and choosing the right tool for the job.

Heather is a passionate coder and entrepreneur. She has experience working with Fortune 500 companies building enterprise level mobile and .Net applications. She spends her spare time at tech conferences supporting the growth of new developers of all genders, ages and backgrounds. When not coding, Heather spends her time as a competitive equestrian and learning the art of mounted archery.

Climbing the technology mountain and halfway up the side. Experience in .Net, Auth, and API development. Dabbles in iOT & databases. Focusing on coding for humans and choosing the right tool for the job. Heather is a passionate coder and entrepren... Show more

Elizabeth Fuentes is a Developer Advocate and AI engineer specializing in agent harness architecture. Her work spans context engineering, agent memory, security guardrails, and taking agents to production. Through hands-on demos she breaks complex concepts into simple, understandable pieces of code, helping developers build more efficient agents and democratizing the adoption of advanced AI for everyone. Master's in Data Science, bilingual English/Spanish.

Elizabeth Fuentes is a Developer Advocate and AI engineer specializing in agent harness architecture. Her work spans context engineering, agent memory, security guardrails, and taking agents to production. Through hands-on demos she breaks complex co... Show more

Richard Harbridge is a Principal Industry Advisor on Microsoft 365 and ShareGate as well as a long-standing Microsoft MVP. Renowned for simplifying the complex, Richard equips IT, executives, and business leaders with three essentials: clarity about Microsoft 365’s evolving capabilities, confidence in responsibly implementing and governing new technologies, and the connections that amplify success across partners, customer communities and Microsoft itself.

Over the past decades he has:
• Advised 200+ enterprises on Microsoft 365 strategy, AI governance and employee experience.
• Delivered 450 + keynotes, workshops and conference sessions across five continents.
• Empowered millions of employees with simpler, more secure Microsoft 365 experiences, while helping partners unlock $300+ million in new revenue.
• Leads CIO think tanks and employee-experience forums while serving on research and community leadership councils shaping the future of work.

Whether architecting AI rollouts, moderating executive roundtables, or writing practical frameworks, Richard’s focus is unwavering: turn technology potential into lasting business impact.

Richard Harbridge is a Principal Industry Advisor on Microsoft 365 and ShareGate as well as a long-standing Microsoft MVP. Renowned for simplifying the complex, Richard equips IT, executives, and business leaders with three essentials: clarity about ... Show more

Ed Pollack is a Microsoft Data Platform MVP with a passion for learning how Data Platforms work and sharing that knowledge with the community. His experiences in data architecture, database design, performance optimization, and security are motivation for public speaking, writing, coding, and other community activities.

Ed has spoken at Day of Data events, SQL Bits, PASS Summit, EightKB, and many other regional and international events. Ed is the organizer of the Capital Area SQL Server Group and Day of Data Albany, as well as a co-organizer of SQL Saturday New York City. He has published a number of books, including "Dynamic SQL: Applications, Performance, and Security in Microsoft SQL Server", "Expert Performance Indexing in Azure SQL and SQL Server 2022", and "Analytics Optimization with Columnstore Indexes in Microsoft SQL Server: Optimizing OLAP Workloads". Ed is also an active contributor of content to SimpleTalk.

In his free time, Ed enjoys video games, traveling, cooking exceptionally spicy foods, and hanging out with his amazing wife and sons.

Ed Pollack is a Microsoft Data Platform MVP with a passion for learning how Data Platforms work and sharing that knowledge with the community. His experiences in data architecture, database design, performance optimization, and security are motivati... Show more

Data Platform MVP, Microsoft Fabric advocate, public speaker, and passionate about everything that transforms data into action.

Currently working at Macaw as Architect & Technical Advocate – Microsoft Fabric, where I help organizations design modern Data & AI solutions on Microsoft technologies, with a strong focus on Microsoft Fabric. Over the years, my role has evolved from technical evangelism into a stronger advisory and architecture-focused position. Today, I combine strategic advisory, pre-sales, and solution architecture to help customers make realistic technology decisions and build scalable, future-proof platforms.

What I enjoy most? Sharing knowledge, experiences, best practices, and enthusiasm around the Microsoft data & AI space. I actively contribute to the community through conferences, user groups, customer presentations, technical sessions, end-user training, and community initiatives focused on Microsoft Fabric, Power BI, and AI.

Besides public speaking and community work, I also share insights and experiences on my personal blog: data-marc.com

Data Platform MVP, Microsoft Fabric advocate, public speaker, and passionate about everything that transforms data into action. Currently working at Macaw as Architect & Technical Advocate – Microsoft Fabric, where I help organizations design mode... Show more

My name is Sergio Albea and I'm originally from a tiny town called Valls, Spain, known for building the best human castles (called castells). About 15 years ago, I moved to Barcelona, where I had an amazing time both personally and professionally. Five years ago, I landed in beautiful Switzerland, where I am currently working as CSOC Security Expert, focus on threat analysis and response on SWITCH (Swiss National Research and Education Network).

With over 15 years of experience, I have immersed myself in the dynamic field of security, focusing on diverse IT landscapes and ensuring robust protection against threats and vulnerabilities. My approach is divided in proactivity, leveraging advanced analytics and architectural design to preemptively mitigate risks and fortify defenses against potential breaches.

Throughout my career, I have had to secure and manage a myriad of IT environments such as messaging platforms, Identity and Access Management systems, Information Protection mechanisms, DevOps, Azure Resources such as Databases, Networking, Storage, Scripting, and others.

I have been fortunate to work alongside professionals and amazing coworkers who have generously shared their knowledge and insights, enabling me to refine my skills and deepen my understanding of multiple best-practices, forever grateful to all of you, as you well know.

Whether through my daily work or via my YouTube channel, I take great pride in sharing my knowledge and expertise with colleagues and at the same time, continue to learn from all of them.

My name is Sergio Albea and I'm originally from a tiny town called Valls, Spain, known for building the best human castles (called castells). About 15 years ago, I moved to Barcelona, where I had an amazing time both personally and professionally. Fi... Show more

Rezwanur Rahman, the visionary CEO and Managing Director of Backend Emerging Business Limited (Backend EBL), stands at the forefront of the tech world as an expert Cloud Solution Architect. His accolades include being a Microsoft MVP in Microsoft Copilot & Microsoft 365 Development and a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT), reflecting his deep-seated passion for innovation and software development. Rezwanur's academic journey began at the American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB), where he specialized in software engineering, laying a strong foundation for his illustrious career.

Rezwanur's professional trajectory is marked by pivotal roles, including Senior Technical Lead (Escalation Engineer) for Microsoft 365 Global Support at Microsoft and Technical Evangelist-Intern at Microsoft Bangladesh. These positions have equipped him with a profound understanding of modern technology trends and their practical applications.

In 2018, Rezwanur made history as the first Bangladeshi to receive the Windows Insider MVP award. This was followed by the prestigious Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (Microsoft MVP) award in Microsoft 365 Development in 2021, showcasing his unwavering dedication to pushing technological boundaries, particularly within Microsoft platforms.

Rezwanur's expertise extends globally through his participation in renowned international speaking events like Microsoft Ignite, M365 Developer Conferences, TeamsNations, GraphDevDay, and Global AI Bootcamps. These engagements have allowed him to share his insights and knowledge with a worldwide audience.

His involvement in cybersecurity, through collaborations with the Bangladesh Grey Hat Hackers and Cybersecurity Alliance-Bangladesh, adds another layer to his professional portfolio, emphasizing his commitment to promoting secure and ethical technological practices.

Residing in Tirol, Austria, Rezwanur continues to be inspired by the potential of technology to innovate and transform, remaining at the cutting edge of the tech industry.

Rezwanur Rahman, the visionary CEO and Managing Director of Backend Emerging Business Limited (Backend EBL), stands at the forefront of the tech world as an expert Cloud Solution Architect. His accolades include being a Microsoft MVP in Microsoft Cop... Show more

Courtney Yatteau is a Developer Advocate on Esri's Developer Experience Team, where she helps developers build better web applications with modern JavaScript tools, libraries, and mapping technology. Before Esri, she taught computer science and mathematics, which shaped her approach to making technical concepts clear, approachable, and visual.

Courtney Yatteau is a Developer Advocate on Esri's Developer Experience Team, where she helps developers build better web applications with modern JavaScript tools, libraries, and mapping technology. Before Esri, she taught computer science and mathe... Show more

I am a data lover, especially in the ecosystem of Microsoft tools. I primarily focus on Power BI, Azure Synapse, and Azure SQL. In general, I follow a very simple motto.

"Don´t say it cannot be done, or someone who doesn´t know it will come and do it."

I am a co-founder and a Lead Technical Consultant at DataBrothers. We are Power BI experts and consultants with a focus on data analysis, reporting, and training in Power BI. We work with our clients across the globe on developing custom solutions and training their users on all levels (from business to development).

I am a data lover, especially in the ecosystem of Microsoft tools. I primarily focus on Power BI, Azure Synapse, and Azure SQL. In general, I follow a very simple motto. "Don´t say it cannot be done, or someone who doesn´t know it will come and do... Show more

Jared Rhodes is a Principal Consultant at EPAM Systems and a Microsoft MVP with more than 15 years of experience in enterprise technology. He has led digital transformation work for Fortune 100 clients across insurance, retail, and life sciences, with a focus on cloud architecture, IoT, AI, and modern application platforms.

His current work spans Azure, AWS, and local private cloud infrastructure, with an emphasis on practical hybrid and edge architectures that connect devices, data, and applications. With a background in physics and a career that has included insurance systems, software engineering, and consulting across mobile, web, services, and cloud, Jared brings both technical depth and cross-domain range to modernization efforts.

His published work reflects a practical approach to architecture, particularly around reusable patterns such as event-driven edge inference and cloud feedback loops.

Jared Rhodes is a Principal Consultant at EPAM Systems and a Microsoft MVP with more than 15 years of experience in enterprise technology. He has led digital transformation work for Fortune 100 clients across insurance, retail, and life sciences, wit... Show more

Ashley began her career in Digital Marketing but found her true calling in the world of Dynamics when she started working with Dynamics CRM version 4.0. Since then, she has become a leading expert in transforming CRM experiences for sales teams, significantly improving sales productivity and organizational efficiency. In recognition of her exceptional contributions, she was awarded the prestigious Microsoft Business Applications MVP in March 2022.

Currently, Ashley is a Solution Architect with PS Hummingbird. With over a decade of experience, her expertise spans the Sales, Customer Service, Marketing & Project Operations modules, business analysis, configuration and automation, process integration, and tool selection and analysis. She mentors individuals and people new to the industry, continuing her commitment to supporting professional growth and development.

Ashley co-leads the DFW Dynamics 365 User Group Meetup, hosts the Awkward Silence podcast with Ed Gonzales, and speaks at Dynamics events worldwide. Her commitment to integrating business processes with technology ensures consistency and accountability, making her a valued business partner in the Dynamics community.

Outside of her professional life, Ashley enjoys spending time with her family, attending country music concerts, and following various sports teams. She is an avid reader and Netflix documentary enthusiast.

Ashley began her career in Digital Marketing but found her true calling in the world of Dynamics when she started working with Dynamics CRM version 4.0. Since then, she has become a leading expert in transforming CRM experiences for sales teams, sign... Show more

25 years in tech, marketing and leadership roles. All about software delivery optimization. 5 years in technical and executive training. Expert in Leadership, DevOps, Lean, Systems Thinking, Continuous Delivery, Cloud Native and Agentic Systems. Coder, speaker, writer. Fixated on improving the ways humans (and agents) collaborate by telling mind-provoking stories.

25 years in tech, marketing and leadership roles. All about software delivery optimization. 5 years in technical and executive training. Expert in Leadership, DevOps, Lean, Systems Thinking, Continuous Delivery, Cloud Native and Agentic Systems. Cod... Show more

Manpreet leads the Modern Workplace AI Solutions Team at Cognizant, where he designs and scales transformative Microsoft-based solutions for global enterprises. Partnering with leadership across diverse verticals—from Media and Entertainment to Financial Services and Healthcare—Manpreet orchestrates Agentic AI strategies that move beyond simple automation to create truly autonomous, intelligent ecosystems. His mission is to redefine the "Agentic Experience," ensuring that AI doesn't just respond to prompts but proactively solves business friction for global customers. As a Microsoft MVP in M365 and AI, he bridges the gap between complex architectural innovation and real-world business impact.

Beyond his leadership at Cognizant, Manpreet is a titan in the technical community. A revered MVP, his insights have reached a staggering 10 million+ readers through his extensive library of articles and blogs. He is the driving force behind numerous annual boot camps, hackathons, and fundraisers, all aimed at nurturing the next generation of tech talent. Whether he is architecting a unified AI Command Center for a Fortune 500 firm or mentoring the next generation of developers, Manpreet is driven by a relentless "human-first" philosophy. Amidst the rapid evolution of the AI landscape, he remains easily recognizable by his warm smile—a reflection of his genuine passion for empowering organizations to achieve more through the power of Agentic AI.

Manpreet leads the Modern Workplace AI Solutions Team at Cognizant, where he designs and scales transformative Microsoft-based solutions for global enterprises. Partnering with leadership across diverse verticals—from Media and Entertainment to Finan... Show more

Paulina specializes in data modeling and automation in Power BI. She also has experience with data warehousing, SQL, and ETL.

"I got to know Power BI during my studies and it was love at first sight. I'm amazed how powerfull this tool is and that it is becoming better every month. As a consultant and trainer, I have the opportunity to inspire my clients and show them that Power BI is more than just colorful reports."

Paulina specializes in data modeling and automation in Power BI. She also has experience with data warehousing, SQL, and ETL. "I got to know Power BI during my studies and it was love at first sight. I'm amazed how powerfull this tool is and that ... Show more

Michael Heath is an innovation strategist and Frontier Firm advisor who helps organizations move beyond digital transformation into intelligent transformation. With more than 15 years of experience across the Microsoft ecosystem and enterprise technology, Michael partners with leaders to align people, platforms, and purpose through AI, automation, and data.

Throughout his career, Michael has led enterprise initiatives that drive measurable growth, operational efficiency, and long-term adoption. His work focuses on translating strategy into practical execution, helping organizations modernize how work gets done while bringing teams along for the journey.

Michael’s perspective sits at the intersection of technology and human behavior. As a speaker and practitioner, he shares real-world lessons, practical frameworks, and honest insights that help organizations move from experimentation to meaningful impact at scale.

Michael Heath is an innovation strategist and Frontier Firm advisor who helps organizations move beyond digital transformation into intelligent transformation. With more than 15 years of experience across the Microsoft ecosystem and enterprise techno... Show more

I love to tell you a story! Whether it's about autonomous agents, boosting personal productivity, enhancing your company's efficiency, exploring the latest CRM innovations within Dynamics 365, or mastering social selling through LinkedIn, I bring each story to life with passion and energy.

I love inspiring audiences, whether it’s on stage, through writing, in videos, or via podcast hosting.

Curious about Agents, AI, CRM, Copilot (Studio), Power Apps, Power Automate, or Power Pages? Ask me, and we could talk for hours.

With over 25 years of experience in the CRM field, I've supported marketing, sales, and service teams around the globe. While I’ve worked with almost every major CRM platform, Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM has stole my heart over the past decade.

Also check my website: https://robkuijpers.com/

I love to tell you a story! Whether it's about autonomous agents, boosting personal productivity, enhancing your company's efficiency, exploring the latest CRM innovations within Dynamics 365, or mastering social selling through LinkedIn, I bring ea... Show more

Business Applications MVP - I breathe, innovate, design and develop as a way of survival. If curiosity killed the cat, I think I have no more lives left.
With a developer background, working with .NET and C#, I got my first consultancy job developing for SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft Project. With experience in several projects worldwide, all kind of organisation sizes and industries, I have focused my expertise deploying Dynamics 365 modules and Power Platform solutions. I am leading multiple CoE implementation for Power Platform, adoption models for Low code in multi-size orgs, and designing a long list of Power Platform solutions combining Azure assets and 3rd party integrations.
My motivation is to keep sharing my knowledge, the outcome of my daily projects and experiences with those who might find it useful, helpful and even interesting.
In addition to my speaker profile I co-organise the Bizz Summit ES conference.

Business Applications MVP - I breathe, innovate, design and develop as a way of survival. If curiosity killed the cat, I think I have no more lives left. With a developer background, working with .NET and C#, I got my first consultancy job developin... Show more

Sasha is CTO at Brainform.ai with over 20 years of experience architecting scalable enterprise systems. With a strong engineering background, his expertise spans frontend, backend, cloud infrastructure, mobile development, and AI — from cloud-based generative AI to on-device solutions. He specializes in building robust, production-ready products using a variety of technologies and frameworks. Sasha has delivered solutions across fintech, digital media, and entertainment. He is a Google Developer Expert for Cloud, AI, Firebase, Flutter, and Dart, co-organizes the Flutter Berlin Community, and is a recognized international speaker and writer, having presented at 30+ conferences worldwide.

Sasha is CTO at Brainform.ai with over 20 years of experience architecting scalable enterprise systems. With a strong engineering background, his expertise spans frontend, backend, cloud infrastructure, mobile development, and AI — from cloud-based g... Show more

Lian always wanted to save the world. After leaving law school, she decided to work with computers instead.
While in Web Dev, she started attending tech events, and soon fell in love with the community. In her roles as Consultant and DevRel, Lian combined technical knowledge with a focus on the human side.
Currently, Lian works as freelance Platform Engineer in Amsterdam and is the Chief Karaoke Officer for Kuberoke, the first and only Kubernetes Karaoke Community. She also enjoys performing in musical improvisation theatre and standup comedy shows.

Lian always wanted to save the world. After leaving law school, she decided to work with computers instead. While in Web Dev, she started attending tech events, and soon fell in love with the community. In her roles as Consultant and DevRel, Lian c... Show more

Experienced professional with a diverse background in Software, Architecture, infrastructure, SRE, OpenSource. Versatile in Research and Development. Proven track record in various roles across startups and corporations. Committed team player, thriving in collaborative environments, and dedicated to continuous learning.

I love sharing what I learn, which is why I actively participate in tech communities, organize events, give talks, and create content on platforms like YouTube, X, and GitHub.

My goal when giving a talk is always to provide practical value by sharing real-world lessons, tools, and best practices that attendees can apply the very next day. If you join one of my sessions, you'll leave with clear ideas, real examples, and the motivation to try it yourself.

Experienced professional with a diverse background in Software, Architecture, infrastructure, SRE, OpenSource. Versatile in Research and Development. Proven track record in various roles across startups and corporations. Committed team player, thrivi... Show more

Ginger Grant is a distinguished Microsoft Data Platform MVP and Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT), renowned for her deep expertise in advanced analytics, machine learning, AI, data warehousing, and the evolving landscape of Microsoft Fabric. As a sought-after consultant, Ginger empowers organizations to harness the full potential of their data ecosystems.

Beyond consulting, Ginger is a prolific thought leader and speaker for both keynotes and technical training. She contributes regularly as a columnist for Code Magazine, authors insightful books, and shares practical knowledge on her blog, DesertIsleSQL.com. Her educational impact spans a wide range of technologies, including Azure Synapse Analytics, Python, and Azure Machine Learning, making her a trusted voice in the data community.

Whether on stage, in print, or in the classroom, Ginger’s passion for data and commitment to knowledge-sharing make her a standout figure in the world of data and AI.

Ginger Grant is a distinguished Microsoft Data Platform MVP and Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT), renowned for her deep expertise in advanced analytics, machine learning, AI, data warehousing, and the evolving landscape of Microsoft Fabric. As a sou... Show more

Damian Synadinos has many labels. He spent 25 years as a software executive across diverse industries, gaining deep experience in technology, quality, and leadership. Along the way, he’s also been a schoolteacher, a children’s book author, a comedic improviser, and a portrait artist - experiences that sharpened his ability to communicate, connect, and think creatively. In 2016, he founded Ineffable Solutions to become a full-time speaker focused on people and fundamental topics such as communication, empathy, risk, identity, and trust – areas that are timeless and universal. His keynotes, talks, and workshops feature original content that blends conceptual depth, practical insight, and interactive humor, engaging the audiences’ hearts, minds, and funny bones. The result is a thought-provoking, relatable message that creates a lasting impact in any context.

Damian Synadinos has many labels. He spent 25 years as a software executive across diverse industries, gaining deep experience in technology, quality, and leadership. Along the way, he’s also been a schoolteacher, a children’s book author, a comedic ... Show more

James Bartlett is a Principal Consultant at P3 Adaptive, a Microsoft Data Platform MVP Alum, and co-host of "The Drill Down with Ahmad and James," which is an interactive video livestream on LinkedIn that focuses on Microsoft Fabric and Power BI. James is also a co-organizer of the Iowa Power BI User Group and the Higher Education Power BI User Group, and he has given presentations at conferences and user groups all over the world, with his most notable recent appearances being at Data Point Prague, FabCon Europe in Stockholm, and RADACAD's Power BI and Fabric Global Summit. In his free time, James likes to write and contribute to open-source software, play the guitar, produce electronic music, post articles on his blog at DataVolume.xyz, and volunteer with a nonprofit organization called Tech Journey, whose mission is "to inspire youth to increase their knowledge and interest in technology by providing engaging learning opportunities led by technology professionals."

James Bartlett is a Principal Consultant at P3 Adaptive, a Microsoft Data Platform MVP Alum, and co-host of "The Drill Down with Ahmad and James," which is an interactive video livestream on LinkedIn that focuses on Microsoft Fabric and Power BI. Jam... Show more

David Kjerrumgaard is a Developer Advocate at StreamNative and a committer on the Apache Pulsar project, where he focuses on the intersection of real-time data streaming and agentic AI. With over a decade of experience building distributed systems at scale, he helps organizations connect AI agents to the live data and tools they need to operate in production.
David's current work sits at the foundation of an emerging discipline he calls context engineering — the practice of designing data infrastructure for AI agents. He explores how streaming platforms like Apache Pulsar and Apache Kafka serve as the event-driven backbone for multi-agent systems, how the Model Context Protocol (MCP) extends to streaming primitives, and how lakehouse-native architectures make real-time agent infrastructure both reliable and cost-efficient.
He is the author of Pulsar in Action (Manning) and co-author of Practical Hive (Apress), and an active committer on Apache Pulsar with contributions to Apache NiFi. As an internationally recognized speaker, David has presented at conferences worldwide — including NDC London, ApacheCon, Community Over Code, Devoxx, and Data Streaming Summit — and was named a Sessionize Most Active Speaker for 2024.

David's career spans hands-on engineering and technical leadership at companies that have shaped modern data infrastructure. He served as Principal Software Engineer on Splunk's messaging team, focused on real-time data analytics at scale. Prior to Splunk, he led solutions architecture at Streamlio and served as Global Practice Director at Hortonworks, where he architected enterprise-scale streaming and big data platforms for Fortune 500 organizations across financial services, telecommunications, and manufacturing.

His talks combine deep technical content with the practical lessons learned from years of production deployments. Whether explaining how to govern AI agents at the data layer, designing event-driven multi-agent orchestration patterns, or wiring live data streams into LLM context windows, David's sessions are grounded in working code and real-world architectural tradeoffs.
David is passionate about open source as the foundation for the agentic AI era. He believes the same open standards, durable infrastructure, and community-driven evolution that powered the rise of modern data streaming will define how the next generation of AI agents reaches production. Through his writing, speaking, and code contributions, he works to bridge the streaming data community and the emerging agent ecosystem.

David Kjerrumgaard is a Developer Advocate at StreamNative and a committer on the Apache Pulsar project, where he focuses on the intersection of real-time data streaming and agentic AI. With over a decade of experience building distributed systems at... Show more

Engineering leader with over a decade of experience in software development and a proven track record of leading teams through modernisation initiatives, high-pressure deliveries, and the kind of challenges where the easy answer doesn't exist. I stay close to architecture and strategy not to make every decision, but to protect my teams, challenge the right assumptions, and represent engineering credibly at every level.

I care deeply about psychological safety and technical rigour — because I believe the best work happens when people feel ownership, trust each other, and know their manager is fully in it with them.

I actively experiment with emerging technologies — including AI tools — to understand their real value before adopting them at scale. Less hype, more signal.
Microsoft MVP in Developer Technologies, author of "Software Architecture for Web Developers" book, and international speaker with 50+ conference appearances — because sharing what we learn is part of the job.

You can see my work in here:

https://medium.com/@ghidersa-mihaela
https://www.amazon.com/Software-Architecture-Web-Developers-professionals/dp/1803237910
https://sessionize.com/mihaela-roxana-ghidersa

Engineering leader with over a decade of experience in software development and a proven track record of leading teams through modernisation initiatives, high-pressure deliveries, and the kind of challenges where the easy answer doesn't exist. I st... Show more

Tori is a Principal AI Consultant at Advancing Analytics. Specialising in MLOps and LLMOps, Tori has worked on many ML and data science projects with Azure and Databricks at all stages of the ML Lifecycle. She is a co-presenter of the Data & AI podcast, Totally Skewed, founder of Girls Code Too UK and Trustee of Girls in Data.

Tori is a Principal AI Consultant at Advancing Analytics. Specialising in MLOps and LLMOps, Tori has worked on many ML and data science projects with Azure and Databricks at all stages of the ML Lifecycle. She is a co-presenter of the Data & AI podca... Show more