Building Intelligent .NET Applications: From AI Features to Agentic Systems | VS Live Las Vegas 2026

Want to go beyond basic AI features and start building truly intelligent .NET applications? In this @VisualStudioLive session from Visual Studio Live! Las Vegas 2026, Jon Galloway walks through the full journey—from foundational AI building blocks to advanced agentic systems that can plan, act, and collaborate. You'll learn how to integrate AI into real-world .NET apps using modern tools like Microsoft.Extensions.AI, vector databases, RAG patterns, MCP, and multi-agent workflows. 🔑 What You'll Learn • Core building blocks for AI in .NET, including Microsoft.Extensions.AI and the IChatClient abstraction • How to use vector data and embeddings for similarity search and smarter data retrieval • Implementing Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to connect LLMs with real-time data • How to structure AI apps with middleware, telemetry, and content safety built in • When and how to use GitHub Copilot SDK vs production-ready AI services • Using Model Context Protocol (MCP) to enable tools, APIs, and deterministic workflows • Designing multi-agent systems with Microsoft Agent Framework • Real-world patterns for orchestrating agents, managing context, and controlling cost ⏱️ Chapters 01:13 Session roadmap and Microsoft.Extensions.AI 03:40 Working with multiple AI providers using a unified interface 05:30 Structured outputs and JSON handling 06:37 Middleware: caching, content safety, open telemetry 08:00 Multimodal inputs: files, images, PDFs 09:55 Vector data and similarity search 11:52 Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) explained 16:40 Demo: AI Chat Web App template with Aspire and Qdrant 22:25 Observability with OpenTelemetry and tracing 26:58 Always use user secrets — never hardcode API keys 31:49 GitHub Copilot SDK overview and use cases 36:53 Demo: newsletter generator built with Copilot SDK 44:02 Model Context Protocol (MCP) and tool integration 49:45 Building MCP tools with the C# SDK 57:06 From single agents to multi-agent systems 58:34 Microsoft Agent Framework overview 1:01:09 Demo: multi-agent interview coach with Blazor front end 1:06:59 Testing, evaluation, and governance for AI apps 👤 Speaker Jon Galloway (@JonGalloway) Princial Program Manager, DevDiv Community Team, Microsoft 🔗 Links • Download Visual Studio 2026: http://visualstudio.com/download • Explore more VS Live! Las Vegas sessions: https://aka.ms/VSLiveLV26 • Join upcoming VS Live! events: https://aka.ms/VSLiveEvents #dotnet #VisualStudio2026 #AI #ModelContextProtocol #VSLive