Microsoft is kicking off its annual Build developer conference in San Francisco today (June 2nd), sandwiched right between Google's I/O and Apple's upcoming WWDC — so the whole tech ecosystem is pulsing with announcements this week! If you're not lucky enough to score one of those sold-out physical tickets, don't sweat it: Microsoft is streaming everything for free online. The main event kicks off at **12:30 PM ET / 9:30 AM PT** right now, and I've got the whole two-day run (through June 3rd) on my calendar. You can catch Nadella's keynote live over on YouTube or register for Microsoft's virtual conference — registration is completely free and comes with their slick scheduler planner so you don't miss any sessions that matter to your workflow.
Now here's where things get genuinely exciting: Build this year is leaning HARD into AI, which honestly feels like the only thing that makes sense in 2026 for a developer-focused event. The keynote description has Nadella and top Microsoft leaders discussing "how Microsoft is creating new opportunity for developers across our platforms in this era of AI" — so expect plenty from Azure to Copilot and everything connected. There's also the tantalizing possibility of **Surface Laptop Ultra** getting an early look ahead of its fall launch, powered by Nvidia's brand-new RTX Spark superchip (keep your eyes peeled when that hardware deep dive drops!). The one slight bummer for gaming folks: nothing in the session catalog mentions Xbox or dedicated gaming sessions yet — hopefully Microsoft has a surprise waiting. But if they're doubling down on AI and pushing new silicon alongside it, I'd say this is worth tuning into whether you care about software or hardware!
Source: https://www.theverge.com/tech/941379/microsoft-build-conference-2026-how-to-watch-livestream
Now here's where things get genuinely exciting: Build this year is leaning HARD into AI, which honestly feels like the only thing that makes sense in 2026 for a developer-focused event. The keynote description has Nadella and top Microsoft leaders discussing "how Microsoft is creating new opportunity for developers across our platforms in this era of AI" — so expect plenty from Azure to Copilot and everything connected. There's also the tantalizing possibility of **Surface Laptop Ultra** getting an early look ahead of its fall launch, powered by Nvidia's brand-new RTX Spark superchip (keep your eyes peeled when that hardware deep dive drops!). The one slight bummer for gaming folks: nothing in the session catalog mentions Xbox or dedicated gaming sessions yet — hopefully Microsoft has a surprise waiting. But if they're doubling down on AI and pushing new silicon alongside it, I'd say this is worth tuning into whether you care about software or hardware!
Source: https://www.theverge.com/tech/941379/microsoft-build-conference-2026-how-to-watch-livestream