Pure Virtual C++ 2026 [Meet the Speakers, Part 1]: Build Faster, Run Faster

Pure Virtual C++ 2026 is almost here: a free, one-day virtual conference for the whole C++ community, streaming Tuesday, July 21, 2026 at 9:00 AM PT on YouTube (Microsoft Reactor) and Twitch, with on-demand recordings on the Visual Studio YouTube channel afterward. Register now →

This is the first post in our three-part Meet the Speakers series. Over the next week we’ll introduce you to the people behind this year’s featured sessions and the problems they’re helping you solve. The theme of today’s post is one that every C++ developer feels in their bones: building faster, running faster.

Why this theme matters

Slow builds and heavyweight binaries are a tax every C++ team pays, every single day. The two sessions below address that tax from different angles: one by modernizing how your code is compiled with C++20 modules, the other by putting an AI agent to work finding and fixing the real bottlenecks in your build. If you’ve ever watched a progress bar instead of writing code, these talks are for you.

Ryan Shepherd: C++/WinRT: Build faster and smaller with C++20 modules

Ryan is a Senior Software Engineer on Windows, where he works on developer fundamentals: WinRT, C++/WinRT, the SDKs, and the CRT. Away from the keyboard he’s a freelance trombonist who also dabbles in composition, photography, baking, and camping with his wife and two dogs.Follow Ryan: GitHub @DefaultRyan

What the session is about. C++/WinRT recently gained support for C++20 modules, and the payoff is real: the Windows Terminal team adopted it and cut their build time by roughly 15% while shedding tens of gigabytes of build-time disk usage. Ryan walks through how that support works and what it takes to adopt modules in your own C++/WinRT code.

What you’ll learn

• How modules change the compilation model and why that translates into faster builds and smaller build footprints.
• The concrete before/after story from Windows Terminal’s adoption.
• What you need to get started: C++/WinRT 3.0 or later and MSVC Build Tools 14.50 or later.

Why C++ developers should attend. Modules are one of the highest-leverage modernization steps available today, but adoption still feels uncertain to many teams. Ryan turns it into a practical, evidence-backed decision with numbers you can take back to your own project.

Learn ahead

• Recommended starting point: Overview of modules in C++ : Microsoft Learn
• Also worth exploring:
  • Modules – cppreference
  • Compare header units, modules, and precompiled headers – Microsoft Learn
  • C++/WinRT documentation – Microsoft Learn
  • Windows Terminal on GitHub

David Li: Cut Your Build Times Without Becoming a Build Expert

David is the Game Developer Product Manager for Visual Studio, with 14 years in the software industry and a genuine passion for developer productivity. A gamer himself, he spends his off-hours with his baby and dog and conquering the world in Europa Universalis V.Follow David: X @thecpppm

What the session is about. This session shows how GitHub Copilot build performance for Windows tackles slow C++ builds while keeping you in the driver’s seat. You’ll see the full agentic loop: capture a build trace, surface the real hotspots (expensive headers, heavy template instantiations), apply targeted fixes, and verify each one with before-and-after numbers. For iterative cases, Copilot keeps the changes that help and rolls back anything that regresses, including honest tradeoffs like a slightly slower clean build in exchange for much faster incremental build. You end up with results you can trust and understand.

What you’ll learn

• How to find and fix real build bottlenecks in minutes instead of days.
• How every change is measured and kept.
• How you stay in control: Copilot does the heavy lifting, but you make the calls on what to keep.

Why C++ developers should attend. Build performance work has traditionally required dedicated build systems expertise and deep tooling knowledge. This session puts that expertise within reach: Copilot does the heavy analysis from a simple prompt while you stay in control of every change.

Learn ahead

• Recommended starting point: Now in Public Preview: GitHub Copilot build performance for Windows : C++ Team Blog
• Also worth exploring:
  • Project-Specific Build Optimizations with GitHub Copilot – C++ Team Blog
  • C++ Build Insights – Microsoft Learn
  • vcperf build-analysis tool on GitHub

Register today

Both talks are featured sessions at Pure Virtual C++ 2026. Register for free →

Next up in the series: The AI-Native C++ Developer Workflow, where we meet Sinem Akinci and Augustin Popa and dig into Copilot across the CLI and Visual Studio. Can’t make it live? Every session will be available on-demand on the Visual Studio YouTube channel after the event.

See you there!