Java, Cloud, and AI: Insights and Takeaways from Microsoft JDConf 2024

A huge thank you to all the attendees, speakers, our hosts, and the Microsoft Reactor team who made Microsoft JDConf 2024 such a success! We couldn't have achieved this without the fantastic teamwork and collaboration of everyone involved.

Our 3^rd annual JDConf conference, held on March 27-28, brought together a passionate community of Java developers from across the globe. Whether you joined us live or are catching up on the sessions on-demand, we're thrilled you were part of this exciting event. If you missed JDConf, no worries, you could catch all the recordings at JDConf.com and on Java at Microsoft YouTube. 

A round of applause for our amazing speakers!

The dedication and expertise of our diverse group of speakers and hosts were truly inspiring. A special shout out to all our JDConf speakers who went the extra mile to deliver their sessions live and some during what might have been late evenings or very early mornings - we know that juggling time zones and family commitments can be a challenge (especially when little ones decide to join the presentations or pets like to be copilot).

We received a high number of high-quality submissions, and due to limited live session slots, some excellent sessions had to be pre-recorded. We would like to thank all the presenters who stepped up to record their sessions. Your effort to deliver these on time and with quality highlights your strong commitment to JDConf and the Java developer community.

Their insights into the latest advancements in the Java ecosystem, including AI-driven innovation, developer tooling, and cloud technologies, will undoubtedly equip developers like yourselves to tackle the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in your professional journey.

Diving into sessions and key takeaways

JDConf offered a treasure trove of content for Java developers of all experience levels. To ensure accessibility for a global audience, the conference featured three dedicated live streams – for the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe, Middle East, and Africa. Each live stream featured unique content and an impressive lineup of 20 live sessions and demos. Additionally, the technical keynote featured Julia Liuson, President of Microsoft Developer Division and GitHub, along with Josh Long from Broadcom and Mark Heckler from Microsoft.

In addition to the live sessions, attendees had the chance to delve into additional sessions available on-demand during the live event, providing a comprehensive learning experience for all participants.  

AI: Transforming the Java landscape

A consistent theme at JDConf across the sessions was the undeniable rise of AI in the Java ecosystem. Several sessions explored the vast potential of AI – how to infuse intelligence into existing Java apps, improving productivity by streamlining development and testing, elevating code quality and leveraging Generative AI to revolutionize the way Java applications are built, making them more efficient, reliable and easier to maintain.

Below are a few notable sessions you don’t want to miss.

Java and AI

• Java Meets AI: How to Build LLM-Powered Applications with LangChain4j, Lize Raes, Open Tide
• Semantic Kernel for Java, Rory Preddy, Microsoft
• Spring AI: Streamlining Java Enterprise AI Development and Deployment, Mark Pollack, Broadcom
• Paving a Painless Path to Production AI in Your Java Applications, Mark Heckler, Microsoft
• Empowering Quarkus Applications with AI and OpenTelemetry on Kubernetes, Daniel Oh, Red Hat, Brian Benz, Microsoft
• Leveraging Generative AI for Java Service Enhancement, Yoshio Terada, Microsoft
• Data Privacy Concerns and Solutions When using LLMs in Production, Lize Raes, Open Tide
• Enter the Brave New World of GenAI with Vector Search, Mary Grygleski, DataStax

Beyond AI: Learning opportunities

While AI undoubtedly took the center stage at JDConf 2024, the conference agenda offered a much broader coverage of topics and learning opportunities. Below are some of the key themes and sessions explored outside of the AI-focused sessions.

SpringBoot

• Bootiful Spring Boot 3, Josh Long, Broadcom
• Fast And Lightweight Spring Boot Applications with GraalVM, Alina Yurenko, Oracle
• How to Keep Your Spring Boot Projects Up-to-Date, Martin Lippert, Broadcom
• Spring Tools Live - All the Great New Things, Martin Lippert, Broadcom
• Insights From a Spring Boot Leisure Project for Everyday Developer Life, Patrick Baumgartner, 42talents
• Going Serverless with Spring’s Support for GraalVM, Project CraC & More, Timo Salm, Tanzu by Broadcom

Jakarta EE

• What's Coming in Jakarta EE 11?, Reza Rahman, Microsoft 
• Fast and Easy Cloud-Native Java Application with Jakarta EE and MicroProfile, YK Chang, IBM
• Hybrid Cloud Application Built with Pure Openness, Emily Jiang, IBM
• What’s new in Jakarta Concurrency 3.1?, Mark Swatosh, IBM
• Unlocking Data Access Excellence with Jakarta Data: Simplifying Persistence for Modern Cloud-Native, Otavio Santana, Otaviojava
• Polyglot Persistence Unleashed: Mastering Enterprise Java Architecture with NoSQL Databases, Otavio Santana, Otaviojava
• Hyperscale Jakarta EE PaaS on Azure, Reza Rahman, Microsoft

Performance and optimization

• Cache Me If You Can: Speed Up Your JVM With Project Valhalla, Theresa Mammarella, IBM
• Instant Coffee: How to Eliminate Java Performance Warmup, Simon Ritter, Azul Systems
• Virtual Threads in Action, Daniel Kec, Oracle
• Improving HotSpot Scalar Replacement, Cesar Soares, Microsoft
• Optimize Java Apps for High Traffic Scenarios, Nikita Nallamothu, Microsoft and Sandra Ahlgrimm, Microsoft

Build, test and deploy

• From Zero to Java Hero: Visual Studio Code Mastery, Loiane Groner, Citibank
• Sparking Developer Joy: Elevating Developer Experience with VSCode Java, Nick Zhu, Microsoft, Mohit Suman, Red Hat and Roland Grunberg, Red Hat
• Mastering Testcontainers for Better Integration Tests, Oleg Šelajev, AtomicJar
• Maximize Azure Container Apps for Seamless Deployment and Execution, Sean Li, Microsoft
• Visualizing Your Build with the Maven Timeline Plugin, Dan Haywood, Haywood Associates, LTD
• Simple and Scalable Performance Testing with JMeter DSL, Carlos Gauto, Mercado Libre
• Azure Load Testing - An Overview, Nagarjuna Vipparthi, Microsoft
• You Can Build Web UI Using Java Only, Sami Ekblad, Vaadin
• Create a Change Data Stream in Minutes with Java, Azure SQL, and Azure Function, Brian Spendolini, Microsoft

Connecting with the global Java community

JDConf 2024 wasn’t just about the technical deep dives; it provided a valuable platform for Java community around the world to connect and exchange ideas during the virtual event but also engage in networking events in select cities.

• Live exchanges: Attendees could engage in real-time discussions with the hosts and guest speakers through dedicated live chat on YouTube and Twitch. This interactive space allowed them to ask questions directly to our speakers and share insights with fellow Java developers from across the globe. [Saleem to add live session photos here]
• Meetup events: To ramp up excitement for the virtual conferences, JDConf team hosted a series of in-person meetup events in Las Vegas, Berlin, Singapore, and Shanghai at the Microsoft Reactor locations around the world. These events provided an excellent opportunity for the Java community to connect, learn and share experiences with Microsoft Java cloud advocates.

• Social buzz: The JDConf hashtag on social media platforms like X and LinkedIn were abuzz with activity throughout the event. Many thanks for our JDConf hosts, speakers and the broader Java community for sharing their excitement and interest leading up to the conference and then continuing the engagement after the event on their personal social media channels as well as on Java at Microsoft. Microsoft Reactor and the Microsoft Developer X accounts. Here are a few featured posts that you can still amplify and share your feedback.
  • Loiane Groner on X: "I’m ready for #JDConf! Hope to see you there!
  • Rory Preddy on X: ":loudspeaker:Are you ready for #JDconf? - I AM :white_heavy_check_mark: As host I would love your questions! Join me
  • Sandra Ahlgrimm on X: "I am waiting for you!
  • Bruno Borges on X: "Missed @Microsoft #JDConf this week and want to watch it, or want to watch it *again* or recap? The recordings are available on YouTube. We will also be slicing the videos for each individual session, in the coming weeks.

• Java cloud skills challenge: And if you haven’t yet joined the ongoing Java Cloud skills challenge, there is still time to do it. You can start developing modern Java applications in the cloud with managed compute, databases, and DevOps services. You’ll learn how to build and scale Java applications on Azure with a range of Azure services and popular Java tools and frameworks. Join us on a learning journey to skill up on Java on Azure.

Looking ahead

The energy and enthusiasm demonstrated by everyone who participated at JDConf 2024 were inspiring. The conference provided a glimpse into the exciting future of Java development, with AI poised to play a transformational role. We hope you will join us again at the next JDConf! In the meantime, don’t forget to check out the resources available on the JDConf website jdconf.com, including the on-demand session replays, presentations and all the learning resources.

Key Resources

• JDConf Event Site: https://jdconf.com/
• Learn Collection: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/collections/j77c6nz1d5rey
• Java Cloud Skills Challenge: https://aka.ms/java-apps-csc
• Java at Microsoft YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPeZXlCR7ew8-u0pfe2d3MlSTfi6yBPSc