Today is the day to watch Microsoft Build 2020 online Yes, Microsoft's big developer conference this year will be held remotely, and you can watch it all for free from the comfort of your own home

Of course, the event was supposed to be held in Seattle, but due to the outbreak of COVID-19, the public event will be held online Fortunately, participation is free There are also two options for viewing Build: via YouTube or via Microsoft's website

Because Microsoft has developers in remote locations around the world, this year's Build 2020 has a unique format; Build is designed to be held 24 hours a day for 48 consecutive hours, with everything related to development happening at all hours of the day

This means that developers will not have to stay up late to watch as multiple segments will run at multiple times of the day Build 2020 will also feature interactive segments, including a cloud skills challenge to complete a "collection of online learning modules" and earn free Microsoft certifications

Here's everything you need to know about the conference schedule and how to watch Microsoft Build 2020 online

If you don't want to register for Build and just want to watch the less interactive live stream (see below for details on Microsoft's plans), the show is streaming on YouTube That stream is embedded here!

To watch Build 2020 and get the full experience, you must register online with Microsoft To do so, you'll need a Microsoft account or an Office 365/Microsoft 365 account for work or student use

Registration for Build 2020 is available here, and those who have already registered to attend Build in person should use the same information

The Build 2020 festivities kick off today (Tuesday, May 19) at 11:00 AM Eastern Time (8:00 AM Pacific Time) at Microsoft HQ in Seattle, Washington, but the first big event will take place 20 minutes later, when Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella will take the virtual stage for a talk called "Empowering every developer"

A brief description of Nadella's talk (via Microsoftcom) states, "In these uncertain times, developers will play a central role in reshaping the world we live in and accelerating our path to recovery"

Nadella's talk may not be like any keynote we've seen before, since the Build 2020 schedule calls for only a 20-minute talk, and the Imagine Cup will take place 20 minutes after Nadella's talk In other words, Build may really be an event "for developers"; the Imagine Cup is a "student technology competition"

The Build 2020 Key Segments will be followed by developer Scott Hanselman's talk "Every developer is welcome" at noon Eastern (9:00 Pacific), Scott Guthrie (and others) at 12:15 pm Eastern on Azure on Azure, and a talk by Microsoft Exec VP Rajesh Jha, "Building the tools for modern work," at 12:15 pm Eastern

The next day (May 20), Microsoft CTO Kevin Scott will give a talk titled "The future of tech" at 12:45pm ET, focusing on "AI, large-scale machine learning, and the convergence of the physical and digital worlds

The final Key Segment is "Power Platform for developers" by Microsoft's President of Business Applications, which will air at 2:30pm ET All of these talks are scheduled multiple times so that people can watch at the time best suited to their local time zone