Weekly Update 28 July 2025 – ATK MCP, ACS Custom ID, Satya open email

This week:

Build Smarter with the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit MCP Server

Identities with Custom ID: A Simpler, Smarter Way to Manage Communication Users

Recommitting to our why, what, and how

You can also listen to the audio-only version: Thoughtstuff Podcast – Tom Morgan on Teams Dev: Weekly Update 28 July 2025.

Find all my videos at thoughtstuff.co.uk/videos. You can also subscribe to the audio-only version of these videos, either via iTunes, Spotify or your own podcasting tool.

Transcript (AI-generated):

Hello and welcome to another weekly update. I hope you’re doing well.

The first topic this week is from the Microsoft 365 developer blog – the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit now includes a local MCP (Multi-Channel Plugin) server.

MCP servers seem to be popping up everywhere, and now they’ve made their way into the Microsoft 365 Agents Toolkit, which was previously known as the Teams Toolkit. This toolkit now includes a local MTP server that acts as a bridge between the toolkit and your AI agents, enabling access to key functionality.

It can retrieve code snippets, app manifest schemas, and help with troubleshooting. I’m a little torn on this update – while it’s fashionable to add MCPs everywhere right now, it’s worth pausing to ask if it adds real value. I think it’s about 50/50 – useful for some, especially newer developers working with agent-based solutions.

The toolkit works seamlessly with GitHub Copilot Chat inside Visual Studio, so you don’t need another tool. The documentation shows exactly how to get started with everything you need right in the native environment.

Azure Communication Services Introduces Custom ID

The Azure Communication Services team released a new blog discussing Custom IDs – a new feature allowing developers to map ACS users to more persistent identifiers like email addresses.

Unlike Microsoft Teams, ACS hasn’t relied on Entra ID because many ACS use cases involve B2C communication where users may not have a corporate identity. Traditionally, developers had to store and map temporary ACS identities themselves. Custom IDs simplify this by letting developers reuse known identifiers directly in ACS APIs.

The technical implementation is straightforward. You can call createUserAndGetToken twice with the same ID and get the same user. This avoids generating new identities each time and reduces backend effort for custom identity management. It’s simple, efficient, and a welcome change.

It’s encouraging to see Azure allocate resources toward developer experience improvements like this, even when it’s not core critical or AI-related. That kind of investment shows a thoughtful strategy for expanding adoption among developers building connected applications—whether via messaging, email, video, or voice.

Satya Nadella’s Letter on Microsoft’s Transformational Strategy

Lastly, I discussed the recent letter Satya Nadella sent to Microsoft employees, which has been made public. It’s a response to the recent layoffs, explaining the rationale behind them.

Satya isn’t apologetic but stands firm in his belief that these hard decisions are necessary as Microsoft adapts to a rapidly changing world. He confirms that by every measurable metric, Microsoft is performing well – market growth, strategic positioning, and investment are all strong. Yet even so, he argues these changes are needed.

He highlights the importance of a growth mindset and recognizes that we’re living through a transformational period where classic business playbooks may no longer apply. It’s a reminder for all of us to stay engaged and adapt to change rather than passively letting it unfold around us.

All right, that’s it from me for this week. Thanks for tuning in – have a great week and I’ll speak to you again next time.