Microsoft has released the second preview of its .NET AI Chat Web App template, aiming to simplify the development of AI-driven, cloud-native chat applications by expanding support for the .NET Aspire framework, designed for building distributed systems.

Announced on April 17, Preview 2 builds upon the initial release that debuted on March 6. The updated template, now available for download via nuget.org, is geared toward developers who want to rapidly create AI chat apps capable of interacting with personalized datasets. Microsoft notes that this release brings stronger integration capabilities and enhances AI functionality through .NET Aspire.

A notable addition in this update is integration with the Qdrant vector database. Developers now have a practical example of how to incorporate vector-based data handling into their applications, improving scalability and experimentation. The new preview also offers configuration support within Visual Studio Code — users working with the C# Dev Kit extension can fine-tune settings, select a preferred model service provider, and choose a vector storage solution directly when setting up a new project.

Looking ahead, Microsoft plans to further evolve the template by adding Console App and Minimal API templates, expanding compatibility with Azure AI Foundry tools, and establishing closer collaboration with the Semantic Kernel team. Eventually, the company intends to bundle the AI Chat template directly into the .NET SDK for even easier access.