AI-Powered Data Querying and Visualization with KQL and Cosmos DB SQL

In this session, we will explore how to leverage OpenAI's powerful language models to generate Kusto Query Language (KQL) queries for Log Analytics Workspace and SQL queries for Cosmos DB’s SQL API. Attendees will gain insights into using natural language to interact with and query data, unlocking the potential to generate complex queries without deep technical knowledge. We’ll also dive into how to visualize the queried data using grids and charts, making data analysis more intuitive and accessible. This session will demonstrate the future of querying and visualizing data, bringing AI and natural language interfaces into the hands of everyday users.

Building Actionable AI Agents with Azure AI Foundry, Semantic Kernel & LangChain

In this hands-on bootcamp, we’ll start by building an AI agent directly in Azure AI Foundry using prompt orchestration, tools, and multi-turn planning. Once the agent is configured in the portal, we’ll take it a step further by demonstrating how to call the agent programmatically from your applications using both Semantic Kernel and LangChain (your choice of framework). You’ll learn how to enable agentic workflows that combine retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), secure enterprise data access, and multi-step task execution. The session concludes with a live demo where we integrate Azure AI Search and vector embeddings to build a production-ready agent capable of retrieving, reasoning, and taking action—all backed by a sample repository to kick-start your projects.

Proposed time: 90 Minutes

Building and Deploying Mobile Apps: Play Store, App Store & Intune for Public and Enterprise Use

This session will explore the end-to-end process of building and deploying mobile applications to the Google Play Store, Apple App Store, and Microsoft Intune for public and private enterprise distribution. We’ll cover the fundamentals of developing native apps using Swift for iOS and Java for Android and the benefits of a cross-platform approach with .NET MAUI. The session will provide insights into how to choose between native frameworks and cross-platform development based on factors such as performance, UI/UX consistency, development cost, and maintenance. Attendees will gain a clear understanding of app signing, submission requirements, and best practices for managing enterprise app distribution securely with Intune. Whether you're building consumer-facing or internal business apps, this session will equip you with the knowledge to streamline your mobile app development and deployment strategy.

Building Multi-Agent AI Applications with AutoGen: A Scalable and Collaborative Approach

As AI systems become more sophisticated, leveraging multiple agents to collaborate, reason, and solve complex tasks is emerging as a powerful paradigm. Microsoft’s AutoGen framework simplifies the development of multi-agent AI applications by providing an extensible environment where LLM-powered agents can communicate, adapt, and automate workflows. This session explores the key features of AutoGen, its architecture, and how it enables dynamic interactions between agents for tasks such as code generation, decision-making, and autonomous problem-solving. Through real-world examples, we’ll demonstrate how to integrate AutoGen with Azure AI services and orchestrate agents to build intelligent, scalable solutions for enterprise applications.

Building Real-Time Voice AI: From Microphone to LLM Response

Voice-first AI interfaces are rapidly becoming the new standard—and now developers can build real-time conversational agents with sub-second response times. In this session, we’ll explore how to architect and implement a real-time voice assistant using streaming audio, WebSockets, and modern LLMs.

We’ll break down how real-time speech-to-text, reasoning, and text-to-speech fit together, compare available model options, and review best practices for latency, barge-in/interruption handling, and tool-calling to integrate with real-world applications.

Whether you’re working on customer support automation, hands-free productivity assistants, or accessibility features, you’ll walk away with a practical blueprint for building your own voice-AI-powered experience.

Building Real-Time Voice AI: From Microphone to LLM Response

Voice-first AI interfaces are rapidly becoming the new standard—and now developers can build real-time conversational agents with sub-second response times. In this session, we’ll explore how to architect and implement a real-time voice assistant using streaming audio, WebSockets, and modern LLMs.

We’ll break down how real-time speech-to-text, reasoning, and text-to-speech fit together, compare available model options, and review best practices for latency, barge-in/interruption handling, and tool-calling to integrate with real-world applications.

Whether you’re working on customer support automation, hands-free productivity assistants, or accessibility features, you’ll walk away with a practical blueprint for building your own voice-AI-powered experience.

Level Up Your Mobile Security: Build & Deploy with .NET MAUI & Intune

Master building and securing mobile apps in this session! Learn to craft your own .NET MAUI app, explore controls and authentication, and then leverage Microsoft Intune's MAM and MDM features for secure deployment on Android and iOS devices. Gain valuable insights for building robust, protected mobile apps!

Guardrails in Action: Implementing Azure AI Content Safety for Responsible AI Apps

AI can be powerful and helpful, but it also needs to be safe and kind. In this session, we’ll explore how Microsoft’s tools—like Azure AI Content Safety, Azure AI Foundry Guardrails, and the Responsible AI Toolkit—work together to keep AI trustworthy and respectful. You’ll learn how developers create custom blocklists to stop harmful or inappropriate words, and use severity thresholds to decide what content is safe to share. We’ll see how these guardrails act like digital seatbelts, helping AI make good choices, follow safety rules, and protect everyone who uses it. By the end, you’ll understand how we can teach AI to be responsible, friendly, and safe for all.

Workshop: Working with Containers in Microsoft Azure

Join me in this workshop to have hands-on on containers in Microsoft Azure including Container Apps, Container Instances, Container Registry, Kubernetes, etc.

Securing Azure services using Azure AD Authentication

Join me as we explore securing Azure Services using Azure AD Authentication (RBAC). Session topic includes

Introduction to Managed Identity
The problem of key-based access
Configuring keyless access using AD Authentication
A .NET application to demo services like CosmosDB, Azure Monitoring, and Azure Cognitive Services using Managed Identity.

Vector and Hybrid Search using OpenAI in Azure Cognitive Search

Join me as we explore the Vector Search (preview feature) on Azure Cognitive Search using a .NET application. Learn how to integrate Azure OpenAI for vector embedding creation and query using Hybrid search.

Building AI-Driven Apps Using Semantic Kernel

Building AI-Driven Apps Using Semantic Kernel delves into advanced techniques for integrating semantic kernels into AI applications. The presentation focuses on using plugins, planners, and vector embeddings, highlighting how these techniques enhance natural language processing (NLP) capabilities. It discusses the role of these techniques in the evolution and refinement of AI applications, specifically when using popular AI services like OpenAI, Azure OpenAI, and Hugging Face.

The presentation also offers practical insights into selecting and using plugins and planners for efficient app development using .NET. It concludes with a comprehensive Q&A session to clarify these complex concepts.

Building .NET MAUI Mobile App and Deploying with Intune

In this session, we will build a mobile app using .NET MAUI and learn deployment using Microsoft Intune. Topic includes
1. Build a Mobile app using .NET MAUI
2. Basic controls and authentication
3. Intune - MAM / MDM for Android and iOS

Akumina [Silver]

Stop in to visit our Silver sponsor, Akumina!

Akumina is the Employee Experience Platform (EXP) that empowers global enterprises to quickly create personalized digital experiences that help every employee in every role work smarter, not harder.

Akumina [Silver]

Akumina is the Employee Experience Platform (EXP) that empowers global enterprises to quickly create personalized digital experiences that help every employee in every role work smarter, not harder.

.NET 8 Deep dive

join me as we explore the latest release of .NET including New feature(s), Performance, and Monitoring.

.NET 6 Deep Dive

This is an online-only meeting. In this session, we will explore

What are new and improved features in .NET 6
VS2022/VS CODE IDE Updates
Tools and Configurations

.NET and Cloud Developers and Architects

Azure Billings and Cost Optimization

In this session, we will explore

Monitor cost in azure subscriptions;
Budgets/Alerts;
Cost Optimization;
Monitoring resource group costs

Azure Automation and Update Management

Azure Automation delivers cloud-based automation, operating system updates, and configuration service that supports consistent management across your Azure and non-Azure environments. It includes process automation, configuration management, update management, shared capabilities, and heterogeneous features. This session will deep dive into Azure Automation and Update Management, the topic includes:

Introduction
Setting up an automation account
Log Analytics workspace
Creating, Testing, and Deploying automation scripts and workflows
Update Management
State Configuration (DSC)
Change Tracking and Inventory

Service Fabric Mesh

The session includes details of Azure Service Fabric Mesh and current offerings, real-time web application, and console app deployment into Service Fabric Mesh.

Real-Time content using Azure SignalR Service

This session will explore pushing real-time data from server to client using Azure SignalR Service and a Pusher cloud. Will walk through scenarios and demo using Activity Stream-based systems built on .NET core MVC and WebAPI technologies.

Leveraging the Dependency Injection support in Azure Functions/AWS Lambda

The serverless technique let you run code without provisioning or managing servers. You pay only for the compute time you consume, and there is no charge when your code is not running.

In this session, we will go thru why Dependency injection is important in serverless coding using .NET Core 2.x. We’ll cover demo and coding samples from Azure functions (Microsoft Serverless technology) and AWS lambda (AWS serverless technology)

Hands-On-Lab (Working with Containers in Microsoft Azure)

This is an online-only meeting. Keep a system ready with Azure subscription (You can signup a trial subscription using https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/free/) to learn hands-on experience on Containers in Microsoft Azure (more details agenda will be updated soon)

Pre-Requisites:
Please get an Azure Subscription and a system with good internet connections.
Please signup the Docker account in docker.com

Training includes
• Introduction to Containers
• Building Dev Environment
• Building Container-based Apps
• Dev/Test Local environment
• Publishing to ACS
• Deploying Web Apps from ACS

Getting started with Azure Marketplace

In this session, I will walk thru the process of getting started with Azure Marketplace and publishing Virtual Machine and Web Applications.

Debugging .NET Applications

This session will deep dive into debugging .NET (.NET Framework and .NET Core) Web applications that are IIS hosted or in the Azure Web Apps environment, the topic includes:

1. Synchronous CallStack
2. Asynchronous CallStack
3. Parallel and Tasks
4. Debugging Production Environment (Profiling, Creating and Analysing Dump files, etc.,)
5. Ngrok tunnel
6. Debugging Client-Side Code
7. Fiddler Web Debugger

Azure Static Web Apps

Azure Static Web Apps is a service that automatically builds and deploys full-stack web apps to Azure from a code repository. This session will walk thru building a modern web app using the Azure function as a backend service.

Azure Private Link

Azure Private Link provides private connectivity from a virtual network to Azure platform as a service (PaaS), customer-owned, or Microsoft partner services. This session will deep dive into the following topics:

1. Private Endpoints
2. Private Links

Advanced Azure App Services (Web Apps) Security

In this talk, we'll deep dive into Azure Web Apps security including App Gateway, VNET, Integrating other services to use VNET and ASE.

AI Plugins and Planners Using Semantic Kernel

This session aims to provide an in-depth understanding of how to create AI applications using Semantic Kernel, with a focus on plugins and planners using Azure Open AI. The demo will include a sample application developed in C#

https://www.meetup.com/nashuaug/events/298402895/

Connecting Multi-Cloud AI Agents with Semantic Kernel

In today’s multi-cloud world, organizations often leverage AI agents from various platforms—such as Azure AI Foundry, Microsoft Copilot Studio, AWS Bedrock, and Google Gemini—to deliver intelligent, context-aware solutions. However, orchestrating these agents into a unified, seamless workflow remains a challenge. In this session, we will explore how Semantic Kernel acts as the bridge between these ecosystems, enabling developers to build interoperable, multi-agent architectures that integrate diverse LLMs and services. We will dive into practical demonstrations showing how to connect agents across platforms, manage persona-based prompts, pass context dynamically, and build adaptive pipelines for retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). By the end of this talk, attendees will gain actionable insights into designing cross-platform, agentic experiences powered by the Semantic Kernel, unlocking the full potential of heterogeneous AI ecosystems.

Building Enterprise AI Agents using Azure AI Search

This presentation will explore the newest capabilities of Azure AI Search, showcasing how they enhance enterprise search and retrieval. Attendees will learn about Agentic Retrieval, which uses AI agents for intelligent, context-aware results; the improved Data Pipeline with RAG-specific data acquisition for efficient and scalable ingestion; Access Control (ACL/RBAC) for secure, role-based data visibility; Sensitivity Labels for classification and governance of sensitive information; and MCP (Model Context Protocol) for development-oriented integration, enabling tools like VS Code to interact seamlessly with Azure services via self-describing APIs and adapters. This session is ideal for developers, architects, and AI practitioners ready to apply these features in real-world solutions.

https://www.meetup.com/nashuaug/events/308656778
https://www.meetup.com/devboston/events/310496113