Unlocking Your First AI Solution on Azure: Practical Paths for Developers of All Backgrounds
Over the past several months, I’ve spent hundreds of hours working directly with teams—from small startups to mid-market innovators—who share the same aspiration: “We want to use AI, but where do we start?” This question comes up everywhere. It crosses industries, geographies, skill levels, and team sizes. And as developers, we often feel the pressure to “solve AI” end-to-end—model selection, prompt engineering, security, deployment pipelines, integration…. The list is long, and the learning curve can feel even longer. But here’s what we’ve learned through our work in the SMB space and what we recently shared at Microsoft Ignite (Session OD1210). The first mile of AI doesn’t have to be complex. You don’t need an army of engineers, and you don’t need to start from scratch. You just need the right path. In our Ignite on-demand session with UnifyCloud, we demonstrated two fast, developer-friendly ways to get your first AI workload running on Azure—both grounded in real-world patterns we see every day. Path 1: Build Quickly with Microsoft Foundry Templates Microsoft Foundry gives developers pre-built, customizable templates that dramatically reduce setup time. In the session, I walked through how to deploy a fully functioning AI chatbot using: Azure AI Foundry GitHub (via the Azure Samples “Get Started with AI Chat” repo) Azure Cloudshell for deployment And zero specialized infra prep With five lines of code and a few clicks, you can spin up a secure internal chatbot tailored for your business. Want responses scoped to your internal content? Want control over the model, costs, or safety filters? Want to plug in your own data sources like SharePoint, Blob Storage, or uploaded docs? You can do all of that—easily and on your terms. This “build fast” path is ideal for: Developers who want control and extensibility Teams validating AI use cases Scenarios where data governance matters Lightweight experimentation without heavy architecture upfront And most importantly, you can scale it later. Path 2: Buy a Production-Ready Solution from a Trusted Partner Not every team wants to build. Not every team has the time, the resources, or the desire to compose their own AI stack. That’s why we showcased the “buy” path with UnifyCloud’s AI Factory, a Marketplace-listed solution that lets customers deploy mature AI capabilities directly into their Azure environment, complete with optional support, management, and best practices. In the demo, UnifyCloud’s founder Vivek Bhatnagar walked through: How to navigate Microsoft Marketplace How to evaluate solution listings How to review pricing plans and support tiers How to deploy a partner-built AI app with just a few clicks How customers can accelerate their time to value without implementation overhead This path is perfect when you want: A production-ready AI solution A supported, maintained experience Minimal engineering lift Faster time to outcome Why Azure? Why Now? During the session, we also outlined three reasons developers are choosing Azure for their first AI workloads: 1. Secure, governed, safe by design Azure mitigates risk with always-on guardrails and built-in commitments to security, privacy, and policy-based control. 2. Built for production with a complete AI platform From models to agents to tools and data integrations, Azure provides an enterprise-grade environment developers can trust. 3. Developer-first innovation with agentic DevOps Azure puts developers at the center, integrating AI across the software development lifecycle to help teams build faster and smarter. The Session: Build or Buy—Two Paths, One Goal Whether you build using Azure AI Foundry or buy through Marketplace, the goal is the same: Help teams get to their first AI solution quickly, confidently, and securely. You don’t need a massive budget. You don’t need deep ML experience. You don’t need a full-time AI team. What you need is a path that matches your skills, your constraints, and your timeline. Watch the Full Ignite Session You can watch the full session on-demand now also on YouTube: OD1201 — “Unlock Your First AI Solution on Azure” It includes: The full build and buy demos Partner perspectives Deployment walkthroughs And guidance you can take back to your teams today If you want to explore the same build path we showed at Ignite: ➡️ Azure Samples – Get Started with AI Chat https://github.com/Azure-Samples/get-started-with-ai-chat Deploy it, customize it, attach your data sources, and extend it. It’s a great starting point. If you’re curious about the Marketplace path: ➡️ Search for “UnifyCloud AI Factory” on Microsoft Marketplace You’ll see support offerings, solution details, and deployment instructions. Closing Thought The gap between wanting to adopt AI and actually running AI in production is shrinking fast. Azure makes it possible for teams, especially those without deep AI experience, to take meaningful steps today. No perfect architecture required. No million-dollar budget. No wait for a future-state roadmap. Just two practical paths: Build quickly. Buy confidently. Start now. If you have questions, ideas, or want to share what you’re building, feel free to reach out here in the Developer Community. I’d love to hear what you’re creating. — Joshua Huang Microsoft AzureAzure Skilling at Microsoft Ignite 2025
The energy at Microsoft Ignite was unmistakable. Developers, architects, and technical decision-makers converged in San Francisco to explore the latest innovations in cloud technology, AI applications, and data platforms. Beyond the keynotes and product announcements was something even more valuable: an integrated skilling ecosystem designed to transform how you build with Azure. This year Azure Skilling at Microsoft Ignite 2025 brought together distinct learning experiences, over 150+ hands-on labs, and multiple pathways to industry-recognized credentials—all designed to help you master skills that matter most in today's AI-driven cloud landscape. Just Launched at Ignite Microsoft Ignite 2025 offered an exceptional array of learning opportunities, each designed to meet developers anywhere on the skilling journey. Whether you joined us in-person or on-demand in the virtual experience, multiple touchpoints are available to deepen your Azure expertise. Ignite 2025 is in the books, but you can still engage with the latest Microsoft skilling opportunities, including: The Azure Skills Challenge provides a gamified learning experience that lets you compete while completing task-based achievements across Azure's most critical technologies. These challenges aren't just about badges and bragging rights—they're carefully designed to help you advance technical skills and prepare for Microsoft role-based certifications. The competitive element adds urgency and motivation, turning learning into an engaging race against the clock and your peers. For those seeking structured guidance, Plans on Learn offer curated sets of content designed to help you achieve specific learning outcomes. These carefully assembled learning journeys include built-in milestones, progress tracking, and optional email reminders to keep you on track. Each plan represents 12-15 hours of focused learning, taking you from concept to capability in areas like AI application development, data platform modernization, or infrastructure optimization. The Microsoft Reactor Azure Skilling Series, running December 3-11, brings skilling to life through engaging video content, mixing regular programming with special Ignite-specific episodes. This series will deliver technical readiness and programming guidance in a livestream presentation that's more digestible than traditional documentation. Whether you're catching episodes live with interactive Q&A or watching on-demand later, you’ll get world-class instruction that makes complex topics approachable. Beyond Ignite: Your Continuous Learning Journey Here's the critical insight that separates Ignite attendees who transform their careers from those who simply collect swag: the real learning begins after the event ends. Microsoft Ignite is your launchpad, not your destination. Every module you start, every lab you complete, and every challenge you tackle connects to a comprehensive learning ecosystem on Microsoft Learn that's available 24/7, 365 days a year. Think of Ignite as your intensive immersion experience—the moment when you gain context, build momentum, and identify the skills that will have the biggest impact on your work. What you do in the weeks and months following determines whether that momentum compounds into career-defining expertise or dissipates into business as usual. For those targeting career advancement through formal credentials, Microsoft Certifications, Applied Skills and AI Skills Navigator, provide globally recognized validation of your expertise. Applied Skills focus on scenario-based competencies, demonstrating that you can build and deploy solutions, not simply answer theoretical questions. Certifications cover role-based scenarios for developers, data engineers, AI engineers, and solution architects. The assessment experiences include performance-based testing in dedicated Azure tenants where you complete real configuration and development tasks. And finally, the NEW AI Skills Navigator is an agentic learning space, bringing together AI-powered skilling experiences and credentials in a single, unified experience with Microsoft, LinkedIn Learning and GitHub – all in one spot Why This Matters: The Competitive Context The cloud skills race is intensifying. While our competitors offer robust training and content, Microsoft's differentiation comes not from having more content—though our 1.4 million module completions last fiscal year and 35,000+ certifications awarded speak to scale—but from integration of services to orchestrate workflows. Only Microsoft offers a truly unified ecosystem where GitHub Copilot accelerates your development, Azure AI services power your applications, and Azure platform services deploy and scale your solutions—all backed by integrated skilling content that teaches you to maximize this connected experience. When you continue your learning journey after Ignite, you're not just accumulating technical knowledge. You're developing fluency in an integrated development environment that no competitor can replicate. You're learning to leverage AI-powered development tools, cloud-native architectures, and enterprise-grade security in ways that compound each other's value. This unified expertise is what transforms individual developers into force-multipliers for their organizations. Start Now, Build Momentum, Never Stop Microsoft Ignite 2025 offered the chance to compress months of learning into days of intensive, hands-on experience, but you can still take part through the on-demand videos, the Global Ignite Skills Challenge, visiting the GitHub repos for the /Ignite25 labs, the Reactor Azure Skilling Series, and the curated Plans on Learn provide multiple entry points regardless of your current skill level or preferred learning style. But remember: the developers who extract the most value from Ignite are those who treat the event as the beginning, not the culmination, of their learning journey. They join hackathons, contribute to GitHub repositories, and engage with the Azure community on Discord and technical forums. The question isn't whether you'll learn something valuable from Microsoft Ignite 2025-that's guaranteed. The question is whether you'll convert that learning into sustained momentum that compounds over months and years into career-defining expertise. The ecosystem is here. The content is ready. Your skilling journey doesn't end when Ignite does—it accelerates.Understanding Small Language Modes
In Part 1, we discussed the differences between Large Language Models (LLMs) and Small Language Models (SLMs), highlighting how SLMs are transforming edge computing. Unlike LLMs, which rely on massive cloud infrastructure, SLMs can run directly on local devices like smartphones and IoT systems, offering faster performance, better privacy, and lower energy use. In this second part, we dive into how SLMs work, exploring their technical foundations and design principles that make them ideal for edge environments.🚀 Mission Agent Possible: Your Chance to Build, Solve, and Win at Microsoft Ignite 2025!
🔍 What’s Mission Agent Possible? It’s a contest designed for developers who love building intelligent solutions. Your mission: Create an AI Agent Solve a simulated crisis Showcase your skills to the world And yes—there are prizes! Top prizes like an Xbox and hundreds of dollars in Microsoft Store credit are reserved for in-person attendees. Global participants can still win recognition and a chance to be featured on the Model Mondays podcast. 👉 Contest details: https://aka.ms/ignite25/mission-agent 🧠 How Do You Choose the Right AI Model? Model selection is critical for building an effective agent. To help you succeed, check out our Model Selection Adventure blog: Learn how to identify the right problem Explore model strengths and trade-offs Test outputs using GitHub Models Playground This guide will give your agent the competitive edge it needs. 📖 Read more: https://aka.ms/models-blog ✅ Why Join? Showcase your skills to a global audience Learn hands-on techniques for AI agent development Win prizes and earn recognition 🔗 Ready to Accept the Mission? Don’t wait—start preparing now! The contest officially kicks off on November 18 and closes on November 20 (PST): 👉 https://aka.ms/ignite25/mission-agent 👉 https://aka.ms/models-blog Follow the conversation: https://aka.ms/ignite25/agent-contest/discord Share your progress on social with #MissionAgentPossible Please read through the eligibility guidance.Understanding Small Language Modes
Small Language Models (SLMs) bring AI from the cloud to your device. Unlike Large Language Models that require massive compute and energy, SLMs run locally, offering speed, privacy, and efficiency. They’re ideal for edge applications like mobile, robotics, and IoT.Foundry Fridays: Your Front-Row Seat to Azure AI Innovation
🔥 Foundry Fridays: Your Front-Row Seat to Azure AI Innovation Are you ready to go beyond the blog posts and docs and get your questions answered directly by the minds behind Azure AI? Then mark your calendars for Foundry Fridays a weekly Ask Me Anything (AMA) series hosted on the Azure AI Foundry Discord. Every Friday at 1:30 PM ET, the Azure AI team opens the floor to developers, researchers, and enthusiasts for a 30-minute live AMA with the experts building the future of AI at Microsoft. Whether you're curious about model fine-tuning, local inference, agentic workflows, or the latest in open-source tooling—Foundry Fridays is where the real-time insights happen. 🎙️ Why Join Foundry Fridays? Direct Access to Experts: Ask your questions live to Principal PMs, researchers, and engineers from the Azure AI Foundry team. Fresh Topics Weekly: Each session spotlights a new theme from model routing and MCP registries to SAMBA architectures and AI agent security. Community-Driven: These aren’t lectures—they’re conversations. Bring your curiosity, share your feedback, and help shape the future of Azure AI. No Slides, Just Substance: It’s raw, real, and refreshingly unscripted. You’ll hear what’s working, what’s coming, and what’s still being figured out. Episode is hosted by community leaders like Nitya Narasimhan and Lee Stott, who guide the conversation and ensure your questions get the spotlight they deserve you can watch all the Monday Model Series on Demand at https://aka.ms/model-mondays and get ready for Season 3 of Model Mondays every Monday at 1.30pm ET. 📈 Why It Matters Foundry Fridays isn’t just another event it’s a community catalyst. Join our communty hear from experts and share your experiences of using Azure AI Tools and Services. 🚀 How to Join Join the Discord: aka.ms/model-mondays/discord Find the AMA: Head to the Events #community-calls and #model-mondays channel or check the pinned events. Ask Anything: Come with questions, ideas, or just listen in. No registration required. Want a sneak peek at what’s coming? Check the Foundry Fridays schedule or follow the Azure AI Foundry Blog for recaps and resources. 💬 Final Thoughts Whether you're building with Azure AI, exploring open-source models, or just curious about what’s next—Foundry Fridays is your chance to connect, learn, and grow with the community. So grab your headphones, fire up Discord, and let’s build the future of AI—together. 🗓️ Fridays | 1:30 PM ET 📍 Azure AI Foundry Discord 🔗 Join NowStrategic Solutions for Seamless Integration of Third-Party SaaS
Modern systems must be modular and interoperable by design. Integration is no longer a feature, it’s a requirement. Developers are expected to build architectures that connect easily with third-party platforms, but too often, core systems are designed in isolation. This disconnect creates friction for downstream teams and slows delivery. At Microsoft, SaaS platforms like SAP SuccessFactors and Eightfold support Talent Acquisition by handling functions such as requisition tracking, application workflows, and interview coordination. These tools help reduce costs and free up engineering focus for high-priority areas like Azure and AI. The real challenge is integrating them with internal systems such as Demand Planning, Offer Management, and Employee Central. This blog post outlines a strategy centered around two foundational components: an Integration and Orchestration Layer, and a Messaging Platform. Together, these enable real-time communication, consistent data models, and scalable integration. While Talent Acquisition is the use case here, the architectural patterns apply broadly across domains. Whether you're embedding AI pipelines, managing edge deployments, or building platform services, thoughtful integration needs to be built into the foundation, not bolted on later.Microsoft Build 2024: Essential Guide for AI Developers at Startups and Cloud-First Companies
Generative AI is advancing fast, with OpenAI’s GPT-4o leading the way. GPT-4o boasts improved multilingual understanding, faster responses, lower costs, and real-time processing of text, audio, and images. This boosts new Generative AI (GenAI) use cases. Explore cutting-edge solutions like models, frameworks, vector databases, and LLM observability platforms. Born-in-the-cloud companies are at the forefront of this AI revolution. Be part of the future at Microsoft Build 2024!European AI and Cloud Summit 2025
Dusseldorf , Germany added 3,000+ tech enthusiast and hosted the Microsoft for Startups Cloud AI Pitch Competition between May 26-28, 2025. We were pleased to attend the European AI Cloud and Collaboration Summits and Biz Apps Summit– to participate and to gain so much back from everyone. It was a packed week filled with insights, feedback, and fun. Below is a recap of various aspects of the event - across keynotes, general sessions, breakout sessions, and the Expo Hall. The event in a nutshell: 3,000+ attendees 237 speakers overall – 98 Microsoft Valued Professionals, 16 Microsoft Valued Professional Regional Directorss, 51 from Microsoft Product Groups and Engineering 306 sessions | 13 tutorials (workshops) 70 sponsors | One giant Expo Hall PreDay Workshop AI Beginner Development Powerclass This workshop is designed to give you a hands-on introduction to the core concepts and best practices for interacting with OpenAI models in Azure AI Foundry portal. Innovate with Azure OpenAI's GPT-4o multimodal model in this hands-on experience in Azure AI Foundry. Learn the core concepts and best practices to effectively generate with text, sound, and images using GPT-4o-mini, DALL-E and GPT-4o-realtime. Create AI assistants that enhance user experiences and drive innovation. Workshop for you azure-ai-foundry/ai-tutorials: This repo includes a collection of tutorials to help you get started with building Generative AI applications using Azure AI Foundry. Each tutorial is designed to be self-contained and provides step-by-step instructions to guide you in the development process. Keynotes & general sessions Day 1 Keynote The Future of AI Is Already Here, Marco Casalaina, VP Products of Azure AI and AI Futurist at Microsoft This session discussed the new and revolutionary changes that you're about to see in AI - and how many of them are available for you to try now. Marco shared how AI is becoming ubiquitous, multimodal, multilingual, and autonomous, and how it will change our lives and our businesses. This session covered: • Incredible advances in multilingual AI • How Copilot (and every AI) are grounded to data, and how we do it in Azure OpenAI • Responsible AI, including evaluation for correctness, and real time content safety • The rise of AI Agents • And how AI is going to move from question-answering to taking action Day 2 Keynote Leveraging Microsoft AI: Navigating the EU AI Act and Unlocking Future Opportunities, Azar Koulibaly, General Manager and Associate General Counsel This session was for developers and business decision makers, Azar set the stage for Microsoft’s advancements in AI and how they align with the latest regulatory framework. Exploring the EU AI Act, its key components, and its implications for AI development and deployment within the European Union. The audience gained a comprehensive understanding of the EU AI Act's objectives, including the promotion of trustworthy AI, the mitigation of risks, and the enhancement of transparency and accountability. Learning aboutMicrosoft's Cloud and AI Services provide robust support for compliance with these new regulations, ensuring that your AI projects are both innovative and legally sound and Microsoft trust center resources. He delved into the opportunities that come with using Microsoft’s state-of-the-art tools, services, and technologies. Discover how partnering with Microsoft can accelerate your AI initiatives, drive business growth, and create competitive advantages in an evolving regulatory landscape. Join us to unlock the full potential of AI while navigating the complexities of the EU AI Act with confidence. General Sessions It is crucial to ensure your organization is technically ready for the full potential of AI. The sessions focused on technical readiness and ensuring you have the latest guidance. Our experts will shared the best practices and provide guidance on how to leverage AI and Azure AI Foundry to maximize the benefits of Agents, LLM and Generative within your organization. Expo Hall + Cloud AI Statup Stage + tutorials The Expo Hall was Buzzing with demos, discussions, interviews, podcasts, lightning talks, popcorn, catering trucks, cotton candy, SWAG, prizes, and community. There was a busy Cloud AI StartupStage, a Business Stage, and shorter talks delivered in front of a shiny airstream trailer. Cloud AI Startup Stage This was a highly informative and engaging event focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its potential for startups. The Microsoft for Startups is a platform to provide startups with the resources, tools, and support they need to succeed. This portion of the event offered value to budding entrepreneurs and established startups looking to scale. For example, on day 2, we focused on accelerating innovation with Microsoft Founders Hub and Azure AI. Startups could kickstart their journey with Azure credits and gain access to 30+ tools and services, benefiting from additional credits and offerings as they evolve. It’s a great way for Startups to navigate technical and business challenges. Cloud AI Startup Pitch The Microsoft for Startups AI Pitch Competition and Startup Stage at European Cloud Summit 2025 This was a highly informative and engaging event focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its potential for startups. The Microsoft Startup Programme was introduced as a platform that provides startups with the resources, tools, and support they need to succeed. The AI Empowerment session provided an in-depth overview of the various AI services available through Microsoft Azure AI Foundry and how these cutting-edge technologies can be integrated into business operations. This was perfect for startups looking to get started with AI or those interested in joining the Microsoft Startup Programme. The Spotlight on Innovation session showcased innovative startups from the European Cloud Summit, giving attendees a unique insight into the cutting-edge ideas that are shaping our future. The Empowering Innovation session featured a panel of experts and successful startup founders sharing insights on leveraging Microsoft technologies, navigating the startup ecosystem, and securing funding. This was valuable for budding entrepreneurs or established startups looking to scale. Startup Showcases Holistic AI - End to End AI Governance Platform, Raj Bharat Patel, Securing Advantage in the Era of Agentic AI With this autonomy comes high variability: the difference between a minor efficiency and a major one could mean millions in savings. Conversely, a seemingly small misstep could cascade into catastrophic reputational or compliance risk. The stakes are high—but so is the potential. The next frontier introduces a new paradigm: AI managing AI. As organizations deploy swarms of autonomous agents across business functions, the challenge expands beyond governing human-AI interactions. Now, it's about ensuring that AI agents can monitor, evaluate, and optimize each other—in real time, at scale. This demands a shift in both architecture and mindset: toward native-AI platforms and a new human role, moving from human-in-the-loop to human-on-the-loop—strategically overseeing autonomous systems, not micromanaging them. In this session, Raj Bharat Patel will explore how forward-thinking enterprises can prepare for this emerging reality—building governance and orchestration infrastructures that enable scale, speed, and safety in the age of agentic AI. D-ID | The #1 Choice for AI Generated Video Creation Platform, Yaniv Levi In a world increasingly powered by AI, how do we make digital experiences feel more human? At D-ID we enable businesses to create lifelike, interactive avatars that are transforming the way users communicate with AI, making it more intuitive, personal, and memorable. In this session, we’ll share how our collaboration with Microsoft for Startups helped us scale and innovate, enabling seamless integration with Microsoft’s tools to enhance customer-facing AI agents, and LLM-powered solutions while adding a powerful and personalized new layer of humanlike expression. Startup Pitch Competition Day 2 of the event focused on accelerating innovation with Microsoft Starups and Azure AI Foundry. Startups can kickstart their journey with Azure credits and gain access to 30+ tools and services, benefiting from additional credits and offerings as they evolve. The Azure AI Foundry provides access to an extensive range of AI models, including OpenAI, Meta, Nvidia, Hugging Face. Moreover, startups can navigate through technical and business challenges with the help of free 1:1 sessions with Microsoft experts. The Cloud Startup Stage Competition showcased the most innovative startups in the Microsoft Azure and Azure OpenAI ecosystem, highlighting their groundbreaking solutions and business models. This was a celebration of innovation and success and provided insights into the experiences, challenges, and future plans of these startups The Judges The Pitches . The Winners 1 st Place Graia 2 nd Place iThink365 3 rd Place ShArc Overall, this event was highly informative, engaging, and valuable for anyone interested in AI and its potential for startups. The Microsoft Startup Programme and Azure AI Foundry are powerful tools that can help startups achieve success and transform their ideas into successful businesses. In the end... We are grateful for this year's active and engaging #CollabSummit & #CloudSummit #BizAppSummit— so much goodness, caring, learning, and fun! Great questions, stories, understanding of your concerns, and the sharing in fun. Thank you and see you next year! We look forward to seeing in Cololgne - May 5-7, 2025 – Collaboration Summit (@CollabSummit), Cloud Summit (@EUCloudSummit), and BizApps Summit (@BizAppsSummit) and continue the discussion around AI in our Azure AI Discord CommunityMicrosoft at the European AI and Cloud Summit 2025- Düsseldorf, Germany | Microsoft Event Guide
Join Microsoft and community experts in-person, in one place. The European Collab Summit, European AI & Cloud Summit, and European BizApps Summit are co-located in 2025 – converging on Düsseldorf, Germany, May 26-28, 2025. Get ready for an exciting experience at the European Collaboration Summit, European AI & Cloud Summit, and European BizApps Summit! Taking place from May 26-28, 2025, in Düsseldorf, Germany. This event gives you the chance to explore over 250 sessions packed with insights on Microsoft 365, AI, Azure, Power Platform, Fabric, and so much more. The best part? With a small upgrade, your ticket to one conference opens the door to all three! You’ll have the flexibility to attend the sessions that excite you the most, while connecting with Microsoft experts and other tech enthusiasts along the way. Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity to learn, grow, and network! The summit will feature pre-conference tutorials, keynotes, breakouts, and more—all dedicated to Copilot and AI, Power Platform, Azure and Microsoft 365 products. With the goal of over 3,000 attendees with 250 sessions across the events. But that's not all!! Along with the European AI and Cloud Summit, which focuses on Artificial Intelligence, Microsoft Azure, OpenAI, and Cloud Security; European Collaboration Summit and the European BizApps Summit, which centers on the Microsoft Power Platform, Microsoft Fabric, Citizen Development, and Low Code/No Code Business Applications. See sessions from all three conferences on the sessions page. Kicking off on May 26 with pre-conference tutorials, the events all run May 26-28, 2025. Join in: The European Collab Summit 2025 | May 26-28, 2025 |European AI and CloudSummit Since its humble beginnings in 2012 with just 200 attendees, the European Collaboration Summit has grown into the world’s largest event focused on Microsoft collaboration technologies. Originally centered on SharePoint, it quickly became a launchpad for innovations like SharePoint Server 2013 and early Office 365. Today, with over 3,000 attendees from around the globe, it’s a dynamic melting pot of professionals—from CEOs to students—gathering in Germany to connect, learn, and grow. At its core, CollabSummit champions knowledge-sharing, meaningful connections, and an inclusive community. Thank you to Adis Jugo, Mustafa Toroman, Brett Lonsdale, Margit Jugo and the wonderful teams of volunteers and sponsors that make these events happen. 101 on the Conference What: European Collaboration Summit, European Cloud Summit, and European BizApps Summit Where: Düsseldorf, Germany CCD Congress Center, Stockumer Kirchstraße 61, 40474 Düsseldorf, Germany When: May 26th-28th 2025 Content: Microsoft presence at the European Collab Summit (ECS) | 3 keynotes | 8 Microsoft Breakout sessions | Microsoft for Startups Booth | Women in Tech and Allies Meet Up Review all sessions, tutorials, and speakers. Registration: Register today | Use the MICROSOFT15 discount code to save 15% off registration. Cost: Summit Ticket - 845 EUR Summit + Tutorial – 1485 EUR Master Pass – 1844 EUR Learn more about ticket prices Primary X handle & official hashtag: Twitter/Instagram: @collabsummit, LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook Note: For this guide, we’ll use their main acronym ECS to talk about the event European Collaboration Summit and be clear when highlighting content in either Collab, Cloud or Biz app side of things. Microsoft keynotes Summit Keynote The Future of AI Is Already Here Speaker: Marco Casalaina, VP Products, Azure AI and AI Futurist Date/Time: May 27th, 9:30am | Expo City European Collab Summit Microsoft Keynote Unlocking the Future of Work with AI and Microsoft 365 Speaker: Vesa Juvonen, Principal Product Manager Date/Time: May 28th, 9:00am | Room 1 Bizapps Microsoft Keynote Reimaging the future of business applications using Generative AI Speaker: Gurkan Salk, General Manager, Head of Product Copilot for Sales, Service and Finance May 28th, 9:00am | Room 3 Cloud and AI Microsoft Keynote Leveraging Microsoft AI: Navigating the EU AI Act and Unlocking Future Opportunities Speaker: Azar Koulibaly, General Manager and Associate General Counsel May 28th, 9:00am | Room 2 😎Register today | Note: Use the MICROSOFT15 discount code to save 15% off registration. Microsoft-led breakout sessions Seize the chance to choose the sessions that perfectly match your role and interests! Every breakout session is packed with thrilling product updates, captivating demos, inspiring customer stories, invaluable best practices, and deep insights into product and solution strategies. Plus, you'll get exclusive guidance on what the future holds. Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity! You can review each full agenda for European Collab Summit sessions plus, use the event mobile app (iOS and Android) to add sessions to your schedule. Microsoft-led Cloud sessions Professionals, entrepreneurs, and businesses can explore opportunities with Azure, Copilot, and OpenAI, enhancing their knowledge and networking. Attendees will experience demos, discussions, and insights into Microsoft's cloud strategy. The focus is on understanding the impact of cloud adoption and promoting Responsible AI. “Microsoft Defender for Cloud: Deployment Best Practices” with Dominik Hoefling | May 27. 11:00am | Room 14b “Integrating AI with Semantic Kernel” With Majid Hajin | May 27. 11:00am | Room 2 “Build apps that don't fail in production” with Waldek Mastykarz and Garry Trinder | May 27, 12:00pm | Room 2 “Building an Automation Framework Using Ansible for Configuring and Installing Line of Business Appl... with Kimmo Forss | May 27, 12:00pm | Room 14a “Supercharge Your Startup: Build Faster, Smarter, and Cheaper with AI Agents” with Amit Svarzenberg | May 27, 2:30pm | Room 15a “You’ve built an intelligent app powered by Gen AI models—now what?” with Julia Muiruri | May 27, 3:30pm | Room 2 “Microsoft server protection - one agent to rule them all” with Tom Janetscheck | May 27, 4:50pm | Room 2 “Orchestrating Intelligence with Multi-Agent AI Workflows” with Daron Yondem | May 27, 4:50pm | Room 14b “Build voice-based AI agents on Azure” with Boris Bazilevskiy | May 27, 4:50pm | Room 14a “AI Agents for the Rest of Us: Building with the Azure AI Agent Service” with Korey Stegared-Pace | May 27, 5:50pm | Room 2 “Personalize your AI: model Fine-Tune with your data in Azure OpenAI” with Massimo Bonanni | May 28. 10:20am | Room 14b “Building Application Landing zones in Azure” with Kimmo Forss | May 28. 11:20am | Room 14a “How to compile models and build agentic applications capable of exploiting the power of Copilot+ PCs...” with Sam Kemp | May 28. 11:20am | Room 14b “Add multi-channel communication to your AI apps” with Boris Bazilevskiy | May 28. 11:20am | Room 14b “Copilot for Security - advanced automation scenarios” with Shruti Ailani and Bert-Jan Pals | May 28. 1:30pm | Room 14b “From Traction to Production: Maturing your LLMOps step by step” with Maxim Salnikov | May 28. 1:30pm | Room 16a “Device Intelligence with SLM: A Path to Edge Deployment and Cloud Integration” with Lee Stott | May 28. 1:30pm | Room 1 “Measure and mitigate risks for a generative AI app” with Carlotta Castelluccio | May 28. 2:50pm | Room 2 “Build Serverless AI Agents with Semantic Kernel & Azure Cosmos DB” with Mark Brown | May 28. 2:50pm | Room 14b Microsoft-led Collab sessions Ensuring your organization is fully prepared to harness the capabilities of Copilot for Microsoft 365 is vital. The upcoming sessions are designed to focus on technical readiness, offering the latest insights and best practices. Our experts will guide you on how to effectively utilize AI to unlock the full potential of Copilot and maximize its benefits for your organization. “AI Beginner Development Powerclass” with Carlotta Castelluccio, Korey Stegared-Pace, and Lee Stott | May 26, 9:00am | Room 6 “Building experiences for the Microsoft 365 Powerclass” with Vesa Juvonen, Hugo Bernier, David Warner II, Paolo Pialorsi, Stephan Bisser, Thomas Goelles, Derek Cash-Peterson, and Julie M Turner | May 26, 9:00am | Room 8 “Microsoft 365 Copilot extensibility using VS Code - hands-on workshop” with Waldek Mastykarz, Paolo Pialorsi, and Garry Trinder | May 26, 9:00am | Room 16a “Microsoft Cloud Security Powerclass” with Tom Janetscheck and Jussi Roine “Copilot in Dynamics 365 Finance” with Severin Bock | May 26, 9:00am | Room 18a+b “Build Your Own Agent Using Microsoft Copilot Studio and Power Platform!” with Henry Jammes, Damien Bird, Bülent Altinsoy, Dewain Robinson, and Daniel Laskewitz | May 26, 9:00am | Room 17a+b “Am I Entitled? How to manage permissions dynamically in the age of Copilot” with Al Eardley | May 27, 11:00am | Room 17b “Latest platform and extensibility options for SharePoint and Viva Connections” with Vesa Juvonen | May 27, 11:00am | Room 1 “Secure and govern Microsoft 365 Copilot” with Erica Toelle | May 27, 12:00pm | Room 16b “What's New and Next for Engage and Teams: Knowledge, Storyline, Communities, Copilot and Moderation... with Dan Holme | May 27, 12:00pm | Room 1 “What's New and Next for Engage and Teams: Communications, Channels, Leadership, Campaigns and Events” with Dan Holme | May 27, 2:30pm | Room 1 “Maximizing your Information Architecture Strategy with Microsoft 365 Content Features for Copilot a... with Mikael Svenson and Kasper Larsen | May 27, 3:30pm | Room 18b “Extensibility Options to Improve Your Employee Experiences within Viva Connections and SharePoint” with Vesa Juvonen | May 27, 3:30pm | Room 16b “Insider Risk Management - Technical Deep Dive” with Bernd Vellguth | May 27, 4:50pm | Room 19a “Unlocking the Potential of People Data in Microsoft 365” with Wictor Wilén | May 27, 5:50pm | Room 1 “Microsoft Defender for Office 365 - Defense in-depth" with Dominik Hoefling | May 27, 5:50pm | Room 19a “The intranet of tomorrow: Beautiful, flexible, and AI ready” with Vesa Juvonen | May 27, 5:50pm | Room 16b “Designing Business-Centric Solutions with Microsoft 365 Copilot” with Andreas Krüger | May 28, 10:20am | Room 17b “Extending Microsoft 365 Copilot” with Paolo Pialorsi | May 27, 11:00am | Room 16b “How well do Copilot and Agents know you and your team?” with Wictor Wilén | May 28, 11:20am | Room 1 “Extending Microsoft 365 Copilot with Declarative Agents” with Vesa Juvonen and Paolo Pialorsi | May 28, 11:20am | Room 16b “Together We Succeed: Harnessing Community for Career Success” with Vesa Juvonen, Garry Trinder, and Waldek Mastykarz | May 28th, 1:30pm | Run Events Stage (Expo) “SharePoint Embedded - API for your applications” with Dragan Panjkov | May 28, 2:50pm | Room 18a Microsoft-led BizApps sessions Browse these sessions to learn about Power Platform, Power BI, Microsoft Fabric, Business Apps, Dynamics 365, and Citizen Development. “Modernize your Contact Center with Dynamics 365” with Ivica Ivančić | May 27. 11:00am | Room 6 “Unlocking the Power of AI in Microsoft Fabric” with Josh Ndemenge | May 27, 12:00pm | Room 8 “Building Power Apps in the Modern Era” with April Dunnam | May 27, 12:00pm | Room 3 “Copilot in Dynamics 365 Finance” with Severin Bock | May 27, 2:30pm | Room 7b “Mission UX: Decoding the Science of User Experience in Microsoft 365 and Power Platform” with David Warner II and Hugo Bernier | May 27, 2:30pm | Room 3 “Unleash the power of Custom Actions in Power Automate Desktop” with Dieter De Cock | May 27, 2:30pm | Room 5 “Quickstart to Microsoft Power Pages” with Dragan Panjkov | May 27, 3:30pm | Room 7a “Building Secure and Reliable Copilot Agents created with Copilot Studio” with Marco Rocca and Fabio Franzini | May 27, 5:50pm | Room 5 “Innovating with Power Platform's Copilot Studio: Extending and Enhancing SAP with Intelligent Agent... with Marysol Mantilla | May 28. 11:20am | Room 5 “The art of crafting effective prompts for your Power Platform AI tools” with April Dunnam | May 28. 11:20am | Room 3 “Copilot Studio - You Can't Improve What You Can't Measure” with Henry Jammes | May 28. 1:30pm | Room 3 “Transforming Document Management in Power Platform with Intelligent Automation” with Marco Rocca and Fabio Franzini | May 28. 3:50pm | Room 6 European AI and Cloud Summit startup stage, Powered by Microsoft for Startups Supported and co-organized by ECS and Microsoft for Startups, the Microsoft Startup Stage dynamic space is where major industry players connect to explore groundbreaking solutions. on Day1 we will introduce current Microsoft Startup AI Partners and Microsoft Startups highlighting how startups, engage with potential investors and build AI solutions, and learn from visionary thought leaders in AI and cloud computing. On Day 2 we have dedicated AI Startup pitch competition at the end of the day the Startup Pitch Competition winners will receive prestigious awards, including membership in the Microsoft for Startups Program, unlocking exclusive resources, mentorship, and growth opportunities. Showcasing Microsoft Pegasus Startups Holistic AI Synthesized Tips for Attendees Introduce Yourself Your unique insights matter! Engage with others and share your perspective. Participate Fully Put away your laptops and stay focused. Immerse yourself in sessions for in-depth learning, tips, and tricks. Share your Knowledge Don’t hesitate to offer your expertise. Sharing what you know can help others and strengthen the community. Ask Questions and Provide Feedback Your inquiries and suggestions can shape the future of our products. Don’t hold back—your voice matters! Stay Hydrated and Dress Comfortably Keep your energy up and your mind sharp. Dress for movement to enjoy the full experience. Learn more Visit CollabSummit.eu and follow the action on X/Twitter: @CollabSummit / #CollabSummit, @Microsoft365, @MSFTCopilot, @SharePoint, @OneDrive, @MicrosoftTeams, @MSPowerPlat, @Microsoft365Dev, and @MSFTAdoption. We hope to see you in Germany for one of the most impactful events of the year! The European Collaboration Summit offers unique opportunities to connect with industry leaders, explore innovations, and gain insights that can transform your career. With tailored sessions, hands-on demos, and discussions on collaboration tools, it’s the perfect platform to stay ahead of trends. Don’t miss the chance to join a thriving community and unlock your potential! Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity – register today and take advantage of the exclusive discount!
