Building with MCP

MCP is changing how developers build with AI, but we're just scratching the surface. Join us for an evening of talks that go beyond retrieval to explore what's actually possible when you give agents real tools, real constraints and real APIs.
Talks
MCP: Context is Everything! - Carly Richmond (Developer Advocate Lead, Elastic)
MCP is a powerful tool for giving LLMs capabilities to not just retrieve information, but to automate key actions based on relevant data. Let’s see how it can be used for retrieving relevant context and other activities such as observability.
Efficient tools with MCP code mode - Confidence Okoghenun (Senior Developer Advocate, Cloudflare)
Traditional MCP approaches choke on context windows: Cloudflare's 2,500+ endpoint API would require 1.17 million tokens. Code Mode flips the script by having LLMs write code against typed APIs instead of making direct tool calls, achieving 99.9% token reduction. Come learn how code mode works and how to optimize your MCP tools with it.
Sandboxes: how to limit agents so we can use them more - Patrick Dawkins (Principal Engineer, Upsun)
We want our agents to run longer and use more tools, but we're hampered by constant prompts for approval. Sandboxes are the practical middle ground: isolate the agent so you can stop watching every command and let it work. This talk covers what "sandbox" means, who provides them today and the Linux primitives that let you build one yourself.
Cooking with MCP in VS Code - Liam Hampton (Senior Cloud Advocate, Microsoft)
In this session Liam will show you how VS Code is fully supporting the MCP spec, from MCP Apps to sandboxing and elicitations.
Agenda
6:00 PM - Doors open, registration and networking
6:10 PM - Welcome (Upsun & Cloudflare)
6:20 PM - MCP: Context is Everything! - Carly Richmond, Elastic
6:45 PM - Sandboxes: how to limit agents so we can use them more - Patrick Dawkins, Upsun
7:00 PM - Break (Food & Drinks)
7:30 PM - Cooking with MCP in VS Code - Liam Hampton, Microsoft
7:55 PM - Efficient tools with MCP code mode - Confidence Okoghenun, Cloudflare
8:15 PM - Open networking and drinks
9:00 PM - Close