Paul Michaels - Lemmy, Llamas, and Large Language Models Locally

Paul Michaels, Microsoft MVP and Head of Technology, brings a practical session on running large language models locally — without cloud costs, API keys or vendor lock-in. The talk is titled "Lemmy, Llamas, and Large Language Models Locally" and covers what actually happens under the hood when you run a language model, stripping back the terminology to show what's useful and what's noise.

The session looks at how modern LLM runtimes expose simple HTTP endpoints and how you can interact with a local model programmatically in C#. Paul will explain what an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server is and walk through creating one. The core argument is that a language model can act as a decision engine that selects structured tools while your .NET application stays in control — a pattern that's particularly practical when running locally. Expect live code and, per the abstract, "fun games".

The audience is .NET developers. You don't need prior LLM experience, but you'll get more out of it if you've written C# professionally. Paul has been programming since 1997 and works across Azure and AWS, so the session is grounded in production reality rather than tutorial-land.

Leeds Sharp is the city's .NET user group, running regular free meetups at venues around Leeds city centre. The group draws a mix of working developers, architects and engineering leads. Sponsors Fruition Group, JetBrains and tronik help keep the events free and the pizza funded. Doors open at 6pm; talks start at 6:45pm. After the formal session wraps at 8pm, a vote is taken on whether to continue at the Brewery Tap or Editors Draft.

Why attend

Paul Michaels is a Microsoft MVP who has been shipping production code since 1997. This isn't a vendor pitch — the whole session is built around running models locally for free, using tooling that integrates directly with .NET.

You'll leave knowing how LLM runtimes expose HTTP endpoints, how to call them from C#, and what an MCP server actually is and does. Leeds Sharp attracts working .NET engineers from across the city, so the networking after the talk tends to be genuinely useful. Pizza and drinks are provided from 6pm.

Agenda

• 18:00 — Doors open, pizza and drinks
• 18:45 — Talk: "Lemmy, Llamas, and Large Language Models Locally" by Paul Michaels
• 20:00 — Pub: Brewery Tap or Editors Draft (vote on the night)

Speakers

• Paul Michaels — Microsoft MVP and Head of Technology, working across Azure and AWS. Programming professionally since 1997.