.NET

Curious about what Irish SMEs are actually doing with AI? We’re getting together with the folks from The Irish Times, Buymedia, and Coolplanet to look under the hood of their data stacks. They'll be sharing exactly how they use Snowflake AI to clean up messy documents, speed up data engineering, and turn weeks of work into hours. Drop by for some honest talk about what works in the real world, plus food, drinks, and a chance to catch up with the local Snowflake community. **Right Story, Right Reader: Building a Hybrid News Recommendation Engine in Snowflake, Juliana Murphy, The Irish Times** At The Irish Times Group — home to The Irish Times, Irish Examiner, Breaking News, The Echo, and more — we publish hundreds of articles every week. The challenge isn’t the quality of the journalism, but helping readers find the stories most relevant to them, as discovery becomes increasingly fragmented across search, social, and other channels. In this session, Juliana Murphy walks through how The Irish Times built For Me — a pilot personalised content feed delivered three times daily to subscribers — using a fully native Snowflake architecture, with no external ML infrastructure or data movement outside the warehouse. The session covers the full pipeline: converting article text into 1,024-dimensional vector embeddings with Snowflake Cortex, building subscriber preference profiles from behavioural data, and using native vector similarity scoring and task orchestration to generate recommendations end-to-end within the warehouse, with output delivered to subscribers via an S3 stage. Beyond the technical build, we’ll explore the constraints unique to news. Unlike entertainment platforms, journalism must balance personal relevance with information diversity. We’ll show how editorial curation, controlled ranking logic, and user choice are embedded directly into the system design — and how those decisions shape both architecture and outcomes. Key takeaways: • Why editorial and ethical constraints belong in your data architecture, not just your product spec • Building a production-grade recommendation pipeline natively in Snowflake (Tasks, Cortex embeddings, cosine similarity scoring, Python UDFs) • What “hybrid” means in practice: combining ML signals with editorial control • Why domain knowledge matters as much as model performance **Accelerating Data Engineering with Snowflake Cortex Code, Jenny Zhou, Snowflake** This demo showcases Cortex Code, Snowflake’s AI-powered coding agent designed to automate and optimize the end-to-end data development lifecycle. We will demonstrate how Cortex Code moves beyond simple code completion by leveraging platform awareness—integrating your database schema, security context, and execution logs directly into the development workflow. **Extracting Structure from Chaos: Parsing Documents from 400+ Media Sources with Cortex AI at Buymedia, Estella Roberts, Buymedia** At Buymedia, ingesting data from over 400 unique media sources is anything but clean. Every source brings its own document formats, layout quirks, and edge cases that completely break traditional extraction tools. In this session, Estella Roberts shares how Buymedia transformed a manual, error-prone bottleneck into an automated, native pipeline using Snowflake Cortex AI and CORTEX.COMPLETE. We'll dive deep into the architecture, explore the messiest edge cases, and share practical solutions for when unstructured documents refuse to cooperate. Expect less theory, more real-world trade-offs, and actionable lessons on building resilient, modern AI pipelines. **From Sprints to Hours: Building an AI-Powered Data Stack at Coolplanet, Niall Magee, Coolplanet** At Coolplanet, we handle massive volumes of customer data effortlessly. But our internal business data? That started with Google Sheets, a basic BI tool, and a quiet confidence that it would scale. It didn't. In this session, we’ll share our honest journey from a fragile spreadsheet setup to a production-grade modern data stack using Fivetran, dbt, and Snowflake. More importantly, we'll reveal how AI became our ultimate force multiplier, turning sprint-long tasks into hours-long workflows. The highlight of the session is a deep dive into our AI-driven build process. We’ll show you how to take a plain-language brief and immediately generate dbt models, semantic layers, and functional Streamlit dashboards. Key Takeaways: * The AI Workflow: Practical steps to accelerate dbt, YAML, and SQL generation. * The Stack Evolution: Honest lessons from migrating to Fivetran, dbt, and Snowflake. * Beyond Traditional BI: Why we are shifting toward AI-scaffolded Streamlit apps. * Snowflake Cortex: How to ground natural language queries in a governed semantic model. **Location** Clayton Hotel Charlemont **Agenda** 6:00 pm – Food & Networking 6:30 pm – Welcome 6:35 pm – Right Story, Right Reader: Building a Hybrid News Recommendation Engine in Snowflake * [Juliana Murphy](https://www.linkedin.com/in/subiuliana/), The Irish Times 7:05 pm – Accelerating Data Engineering with Snowflake Cortex Code * [Jenny Zhou](https://www.linkedin.com/in/yingying-jenny-zhoudong/), Snowflake 7:25 pm – Break 7:35 pm – Extracting Structure from Chaos: Parsing Documents from 400+ Media Sources with Cortex AI at Buymedia * [Estella Roberts](https://www.linkedin.com/in/estellaroberts/), Buymedia 8:05 pm – From Sprints to Hours: Building an AI-Powered Data Stack at Coolplanet * [Niall Magee](https://www.linkedin.com/in/niall-magee/), Coolplanet 8:35 pm onwards – Drinks & Networking

**Power Pages Server Logic: Finally, real backend power** If you’ve built Power Pages portals before, you’ve probably had to juggle JavaScript, Liquid, and Power Automate just to implement what should be simple backend logic. Finally, things are changing, Server-Side Logic introduces a new way to handle business rules, validations, and integrations—securely and in real time—without relying on workarounds. In this session, we’ll break down what this means in practice, when to use it and how it compares to other methods. We’ll also run through a live demo to show how it works end-to-end. bio: **Oliver** **Rodrigues** is a Microsoft Business Application MVP and Power Platform Architect. He’s been working with Portals over the last several years and love to share knowledge and experience with the community. **Prompt to App: Does Copilot Plans Actually Deliver?** In this session, we’ll take a practical look at Copilot Plans in Microsoft Power Apps and see how far it can really go in building apps from a simple prompt. Starting with a real scenario, we’ll generate an app using Copilot, explore what it creates in Microsoft Dataverse, and review where it works well versus where it still needs manual refinement. Expect a live demo, honest observations, and a clear view of whether this is a genuine productivity boost or just a good starting point. **Mohit Chaturvedi** Dynamics 365 and Power Platform Lead at Simply Dynamics ; with 12 years of experience delivering enterprise CRM solutions across sectors including finance, retail, public sector, and manufacturing. Experienced in solution architecture, cloud migrations, and leading cross-functional teams.

Join us to **practise and improve your target language with native speakers on Thursday downstairs in River Bar** (Burgh Quay, Dublin 2) from **6.30pm to 8.30pm**. **Our system:** **• You sit opposite a native speaker of the language you're learning** **• You speak 5mins English, 5mins other language, then change table** This ensures everyone gets an equal opportunity to practise the language they're learning. Our team seats people, controls the time, organises the table changes etc. What to expect: • Relaxed easy going atmosphere • Professional and quality service • Great networking opportunities • All levels welcome from absolute beginner to fully fluent • A big mix of ages with attendees at each event from 18 to 70+ years old • Topic cards on the tables to help start conversations Wide range of languages: We usually have **native speakers of English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, Italian, Japanese, Chinese** and more depending on who shows up. **Admission fee €7** (€6 for student card holders). **No pre-registration required, just show up**. Loyalty card system: Come to 5 events and the 6th is free. Over 150,000 people have attended our language exchange events since 2012 to practise and improve their target language - you can too! Everyone is welcome! For more news and info check: Website: [www.languageexchangeireland.com](http://www.languageexchangeireland.com/) FB: [www.facebook.com/languageexchangeireland](http://www.facebook.com/languageexchangeireland) Instagram: [www.instagram.com/languageexchangeireland](http://www.instagram.com/languageexchangeireland) NOTE: The MeetUp attendance does not reflect actual attendance. There are usually around 100 people at each event.

Join us to **practise and improve your Spanish/English with native speakers every Thursday @ River Bar** (Burgh Quay, Dublin 2) from **6.30pm to 8.30pm**. **Our system:** **• You sit opposite a native speaker of the language you're learning** **• You speak 5mins English, 5mins Spanish, then change table** This ensures everyone gets an equal opportunity to speak the language they're learning. Our team organises everything such as the timing, seating people, moving people etc. What to expect: • Relaxed easy going atmosphere • Professional and quality service • Great networking opportunities • All levels welcome from absolute beginner to fully fluent • A big mix of ages with people from 18 years to 70+ attending each event • Topic cards on the tables to help start conversations **Admission fee €7** (€1 off for student card holders). **No pre-registration required, just show up.** Loyalty card system: Come to 5 events and the 6th is free. Over 150,000 people have attended our language exchanges to practise and improve their target language - you can too! Everyone is welcome! For more news and info check: Website: [www.languageexchangeireland.com](http://www.languageexchangeireland.com/) FB: [www.facebook.com/languageexchangeireland](http://www.facebook.com/languageexchangeireland) Instagram: [www.instagram.com/languageexchangeireland](http://www.instagram.com/languageexchangeireland)

Welcome to lockpicking at Tog. Join us as we teach the various methods of picking and bypassing common locks in Ireland. All equipment provided. Warm clothes reccomended as the heating isnt the best.

Join us to **practise and improve your Italian-English with native speakers every Thursday downstairs at River Bar** (Burgh Quay, Dublin 2) **from 6.30pm to 8.30pm**. **Our system:** **• You sit opposite a native speaker of the language you're learning** **• You speak 5mins English, 5mins Italian, then change table** This ensures everyone gets an equal opportunity to practise the language they're learning. Our team seats people, controls the time, organises the table changes etc. What to expect: • Relaxed easy going atmosphere • Professional and quality service • Great networking opportunities • All levels welcome from absolute beginner to fully fluent • A big mix of ages with attendees at each event from 18 to 70+ years old • Topic cards on the tables to help start conversations **Admission fee €7** (€1 off for student card holders). **No pre-registration required, just show up**. Loyalty card system: Come to 5 events and the 6th is free. Over 150,000 people have attended our language exchange events since 2012 to practise and improve their target language - you can too! For more news and info check: Website: [www.languageexchangeireland.com](http://www.languageexchangeireland.com/) FB: [www.facebook.com/languageexchangeireland](http://www.facebook.com/languageexchangeireland) Instagram: [www.instagram.com/languageexchangeireland](http://www.instagram.com/languageexchangeireland) We also organise this event every Monday at River Bar at 6.30pm.

Adult Bachata and Salsa dance classes with practice social at Coolock Ardlea Scout Den Coolock Village. This is a mirror studio located upstairs from the hall with nice wooden floors. This is a weekly Thursday event. Come down, learn and have fun! Men and Women are welcome. Free taster for first timers and discount for students, request via dm. Beginners cost 10 euro for all beginner classes and practice.

Give(a)Go is hosting a beginner-friendly agent builder day in Dublin on **May 2nd**, as part of a global week of building around AI agents. **NOTE: To confirm your spot register on [www.giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent](https://giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent)** Agents are the new apps. They don't just respond, they reason, plan, and act. They browse the web, call APIs, write code, send messages, and loop until the job is done. And right now, the tooling to build them has caught up with the ambition. This is a beginner-friendly event. ​This is a day to go from zero to a working agent. Something that actually does something. Not a demo, not a prototype sitting in a notebook -- a deployed, live, usable thing with a URL you can share. ## ​Build tracks ​You can choose one of the tracks below, or mix tools if your idea needs it. ## ​Track 1: Vibe coding agents with Vercel ​Use Vercel’s tools to go quickly from idea to deployed agent. ​This track is for people who want to build fast, prototype with natural language, create interfaces, connect tools, and ship something live by the end of the day. ​**v0 + MCPs** Go from prompt to interface, then connect your app to real tools and data. ​**Workflow Development Kit** Build durable agent workflows that can run async tasks, recover from failures, and continue across deploys. ​**ChatSDK Agents** Create agents that live inside chat-based workflows like Slack, Discord, GitHub, or your own product. **NOTE: To confirm your spot register on [www.giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent](https://giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent)** # ​Track 2: Production-ready agents with Lua ​Use Lua to build agents that connect to real tools, APIs, and business workflows. ​This track is for builders who want to write actual agent logic in TypeScript, define custom tools, connect external services, test locally, and deploy without managing infrastructure. ​Lua is especially useful for agents that need to work across real channels like web, mobile, Slack, email, WhatsApp, Instagram, or Facebook Messenger, while handling hosting, scaling, orchestration, context, retries, and monitoring behind the scenes. ​Good for builders who want to create agents that feel closer to real products: customer support agents, lead qualification agents, internal operations agents, e-commerce assistants, research agents, workflow automations, and API-connected assistants. **What to Expect on the Day** * ​A full day of focused building with other motivated builders * ​Short kickoff to set direction and expectations * ​Focused on hands-on learning, learning by doing * ​Build solo or collaborate with someone new * ​End-of-day demos where people shares what they shipped *** ## ​Schedule ​🕙 **11:00 AM** — Doors open 💡 **11:15 AM** — Welcome + kickoff 🎨 **12:00 PM** — Inspiration & scoping 🍕 **1:00 PM** — Lunch 🖥️ **4 :30 PM** — Live demos & shipped agents showcase **NOTE: To confirm your spot register on [www.giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent](https://giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent)** ## ​Global prizes ​Builders who submit through the global build week will also be eligible for the global competition, with **$6,000+ in prizes**. ​Top submissions can win up to **$3,000 in credits plus Vercel Pro**. There will also be a **Community Favourite** award voted on by builders globally on May 3 and 4. # ​**Sponsors** ## ​[V0](https://v0.app/?utm_source=luma) by Vercel ​v0 is the leading AI-powered interface builder for modern web teams — empowering marketers, product folks, designers, developers, and AI-curious builders come together to ship real apps using v0. ## ​[Lua AI](https://heylua.ai/?utm_source=luma) \- The Agent OS ​Build, deploy, and scale enterprise-grade AI agents. Ship your first agent without touching infrastructure. ## ​[Baseline](https://baseline.community/?utm_source=luma) *(Venue Partner)* ​Baseline is an independent community and workspace for early-stage founders who are building breakout and break-through tech companies in Ireland. ## ​Community Partner ​[​](https://www.wolfpack-digital.com/?utm_source=luma)**[Wolfpack Digital](https://www.wolfpack-digital.com/?utm_source=luma):** Award-winning web and mobile product studio with teams in Dublin and Cluj-Napoca, working with clients from early-stage startups to global brands. *** **NOTE: To confirm your spot register on [www.giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent](https://giveago.co/register/zero-to-agent)** ## ​**​Community** ​​​​\*\*[Give(a)Go](https://giveago.co/?utm_source=luma)\*\* is a Dublin-based builder community running hands-on technical events for ambitious people who make things. 30+ events. 1,500+ attendees. One rule: learning by building. ​​​Follow us on: [LinkedIn](https://linkedin.com/company/giveago?utm_source=luma) \| [Instagram](https://instagram.com/giveago?utm_source=luma) \| [Website](https://giveago.co/?utm_source=luma) \| [GitHub](https://github.com/giveago?utm_source=luma) ​​*We’ll be taking photos and short video clips throughout the day for recap posts and marketing. By registering, you consent to being included. If you prefer not to appear in any photos or videos, just let one of the hosts know when you arrive* **NOTE: To apply to join register on [www.giveago.co/register/filmmaking](https://giveago.co/register/filmmaking)**

Hi all, lets meet at 12h to play Beach Volleyball in BullIsland, near the car park on the "Statue of Our Lady, Star Of The Sea" side of BullIsland. From Clontarf Rd cross over "The Wooden Bridge" and keep going on until the end, turn left when you see the beach car park and keep going to the left. We will set the nets beside the car park 😉 Please avoid to park at the beach because the car can get stuck on the sand. If you come by car park as soon as you find space and then walk. The idea is to have lunch at the beach and play beach volleyball. Please bring water, sun glasses (for the sand more than the sun) and sun cream (even when it's cloudy you can still get burned with the wind). I would love to create another lovely healthy group to have fun with and enjoy the weather whenever it's possible. All levels are welcome because the goal is to have fun and do some exercise. Any questions please contact me over the phone: 0876819433, or put a comment on this Meetup. Please bear in mind that on the same day of the event it'll be driving so give me a phone call if you are lost.

Passeggiata poi pizza? Fancy a walk along Sandymount Strand? Facciamo una passeggiata sul lungomare di Sandymount, poi andiamo a mangiare la pizza, o bere solo una birra, in compania. We will meet at the entrance to Tesco's in Sandymount at 2 PM. The event should last 2-3 hours, walking: 1-1.5 hours.

Are you Solo and Single!! Easily Make new 💑 friends🍻 with Speed Friending! No need for Apps 😀We are meeting for social drinks including soft drinks 🍺🍸🍷 at the Lemon & Duke Bar. We will be inside the Bar area. The Lemon & Duke Bar has also great food 🍗🍖🍰🍮 . Please, at least buy a drink or a soft drink or so, as we may not be welcomed again to certain bars. We will go to another late bar afterwards. So Dress Nice & neat please. Leave your surfing cloths and 🏖 surfboards at home please.😂 https://youtu.be/wD0Mm6WIcYs?feature=shared https://youtu.be/mfJC34tOZms?is=5qdsIcjAysSKDBbn Many new people come solo to socialize and make new friends, so do not worry if you are solo, you are welcome to join us. I will introduce you to others in the group,so you are no longer solo. 😆Welcome to ask me questions about hiking gear and 🐬🐠🐡 scuba diving.

**Hello Mishmashers 👋** Excited to see you at our next meetup! Here's what you can look forward to: 💬 **Great chats with lovely people**! whether you're a local or from the other side of the world, you’re very welcome here! 🌍 **Not a native English speaker?** Awesome, you’ll get to practice with native speakers in a relaxed, no-pressure setting. 🇮🇪 **Are you a native English speaker?** Cool! Chat in English or find someone to practice another language with. Why not mix it up? ✨ We’re a **diverse, super-friendly, and inclusive bunch**, open to everyone, whether you’re shy, outgoing, or somewhere in between. 🎯 Our awesome organizers are always around to make sure things run smoothly and everyone feels included. 💡 One of the nicest things we hear again and again: even introverts feel at ease here. That’s something we’re really proud of. 🤝 **Instant connections!** You might walk in alone, but you'll probably leave with new friends. 📅 **This Saturday at 2:30pm!** We’ll be downstairs around the big oval table at a much-loved venue that's perfect for easy-going conversations and real connection. 🎉 **Theme: “International Mishmash”**: A chill space for people from all over (including Ireland!) to swap stories, share laughs, and practice languages if you fancy. (Shout-out to our lovely Irish regulars!) 🍻 **And after?** At 5pm, we’ll head over to the nearby **RIOT Pub** for tasty burgers and proper pints. Always a good time!!! *** **Want to support the group? 🙏** Running this thing costs over €200 a year (yep, all out of pocket for now 😅). If you’d like to chip in, we’d really appreciate it: * [PayPal](https://paypal.me/meetuppay) * [Revolut](https://revolut.me/michelf9a) (you can pay with your card, no need to be on Revolut!). Your help keeps the group going and opens the door for even more cool events (like day trips and gigs!). Cheers and see you soon! **– Michele & the Meetup Crew**

📚Reading books and discussing them are two distinct experiences! Conversations about books and sharing insights help us better appreciate literature and enrich our lives. Let's grab a drink (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) and discuss books we're currently reading or have recently enjoyed—whether poetry, fiction, or non-fiction. Bring your physical book or e-reader. There's no formal structure or agenda—just books and good conversation.💬 It's a perfect place to get book recommendations and rediscover your reading momentum if you've hit a slump. We welcome readers of all backgrounds and interests! ⚠️**Something Happened?** If something unpleasant happened to you, it may happen to others. Even if it seems minor, don't hesitate to reach out to me. 🔍 **How to find us?** * When I reach the venue, I'll leave a comment in the meetup where the group is seated. Normally, the booking is in my name, so you can ask the staff for the group. * If you're unable to find us, leave a comment in the meetup page. I'll be able to guide you. We highly encourage you to move between tables and strike up conversations with fellow book lovers. These discussions about literature and reading recommendations are often the highlight of the event! As an organizer, I'm always looking for feedback about the event and suggestions for new events, so feel free to suggest ideas to me. 💡 I look forward to seeing you all! 😊

Make New Friends💏! This Event is a large Monthly Social Salsa Dance Party 🎉🎊🎇 for Salsa Dancers and for those New Solo people who want to learn Salsa dancing. This Salsa Dance Party will be held in a large hall. There is Bar facilities, cheaper drinks and toilets are avaliable. Time of Dance Party from about 9.30pm/10pm. till after 1 am. Dress: Neat Dress. (Salsa Dance class lesson from 8.45pm to 9.30pm.) There may also be free Pizza at the end of the party like in previous parties. There are Salsa Social Dance Classes on Thursday evenings for those who like to learn or improve Salsa dancing. The entrance fee for the Salsa Party is 10 euros at the Door, which includes the Salsa class lesson. This is very good value. Place of large Hall is in Dublin 8. There is a large Free Car Parking at the back also. Dublin Bus 2 mins walk. There will be many other solo people attending from all around Ireland beside this meetup who already know this venue. In the past Social Salsa Dance Parties, over 270 people attended. https://youtu.be/DWir_XczIE8?is=YWe0j-H3tECeWaQx https://youtu.be/iyLdoQGBchQ?feature=shared So if you are Solo, like Social Dancing, meeting new people and or like a free lesson to start learning Salsa dancing, RSVP and I will send you the Dance Party Address Details on the day of the event. Many people come solo, so do not worry, come solo or bring your friends with you and enjoy the great Latino music and social Salsa dancing.

**Important time note:** Please plan on arriving between 5:30 and 6:00 as the elevators lock after 6 and you'll need to message us and we'll need to come get you. The building address is 4450 Bridge Park The entrance is 6620 Mooney St, Suite 400 You will need to scan your ID at the door to get a visitor badge. **Abstract** TBD **YouTube Link** TBD

**Important time note:** Please plan on arriving between 5:30 and 6:00 as the elevators lock after 6 and you'll need to message us and we'll need to come get you. The building address is 4450 Bridge Park The entrance is 6620 Mooney St, Suite 400 You will need to scan your ID at the door to get a visitor badge. **Abstract** *Customize the IDE: Building Extensions for Visual Studio Code* Visual Studio Code is one of the most widely used development environments today, and much of its flexibility comes from its extension ecosystem. Extensions allow developers to customize the editor with new features, integrations, and workflow improvements tailored to their needs. In this session, we’ll cover what extensions are and the different types available, including full extensions written in TypeScript or JavaScript, along with lighter-weight extensions such as color themes, language packs, language support, code snippets, and keymaps. We’ll also look at practical reasons a developer might create an extension, from automating repetitive tasks to adding custom tooling. The session includes a hands-on walkthrough of creating a new extension, testing it locally, and understanding the basic project structure. We’ll close with a brief overview of how extensions are packaged and published to the Visual Studio Marketplace and other distribution options. **YouTube Link** TBD

Come out to Improving for our monthly iOS and Mac meetings. This Month's Presentation: Nothing yet. (You should volunteer). What is Cocoaheads (http://cocoaheads.org/)? CocoaHeads is a group devoted to discussion of Apple Computer's Cocoa Framework for programming on MacOS X and iOS (including the iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch). During monthly meetings, members present on their projects and offer tutorials on various programming topics. What is BuckeyeCocoa (http://buckeyecocoa.org/)? BuckeyeCocoa is a group of Objective-C/Swift developers/enthusiasts. We host monthly Cocoaheads and near-weekly NSCoder meetings in Columbus, Ohio. The meetings are free to attend. Presentations! Presenters welcome! We are always in need of people willing to present material. Any Swift and/or Objective-C related topic is welcome. Times can be 5 minutes (i.e. lightning talks) to a maximum of 2 hours. Interested? Contact info is on the BuckeyeCocoa website. To volunteer for a presentation contact us at @BuckeyeCocoa on Twitter. Follow us on Twitter! @BuckeyeCocoa (https://twitter.com/#!/Buckeyecocoa/) For more information: http://buckeyecocoa.org/

It feels like we just saw each other 🤷. Join members of the local design and UX community for our monthly breakfast. For May we’re stopping in for Rooh’s popup breakfast/cafe concept. You know someone is getting the lobster yuzu croissant, and that’s not even the prettiest thing on the menu!.

Connected Westerville Night of Networking flips the script on networking, with surprises and connections that'll make you say, "Who knew networking could be this much fun?!"

Our monthly PHP meetup. A virtual shindig courtesy of Zoom. Check back here for the details around 6:15 pm