Skip to content
MeetupOnlinePast event

What does an agent actually cost? Designing for token economics before you ship

Event artwork for What does an agent actually cost? Designing for token economics before you ship

This event has ended

This listing is kept as an archive. Explore upcoming events to find your next one.

See upcoming events in Liverpool

Supporting this event

Sponsors

Hyperloop RecruitmentJetBtrainsThe Acorn Group
About this event

What to expect

Learn how to forecast and control the real cost of AI agents at this hybrid Dot NET Liverpool meetup on 25 August 2026 in Liverpool.

Unlike a predictable REST call, an AI agent can cost a different amount each time it runs. Reasoning depth, tool calls, retries and an expanding context can all increase usage,and model tokens are only part of the bill. In this practical talk, Dieter Gobeyn will explain what teams actually pay for when building agents with Microsoft AI Foundry and how architectural decisions made before launch can keep that spend under control.

What you’ll learn

The session will examine the economics behind production AI agents, including:

  • Why apparently similar prompts can produce very different running costs
  • How reasoning depth, retries, tool use and context growth affect consumption
  • Costs within Microsoft AI Foundry that extend beyond model tokens
  • Architectural options for controlling and forecasting spend
  • Situations where an agent is the wrong solution and should not be built

Dieter will support the talk with live demonstrations in the AI Foundry portal. Attendees will also leave with a FinOps checklist they can apply when assessing or designing their own agent systems.

The content is especially relevant to .NET and C# developers, software architects, technical leads and teams exploring AI agent development. It should also be useful to anyone responsible for evaluating the operational cost of AI-powered software. No formal experience requirements are listed, although the focus is firmly on practical software development and architecture rather than a general introduction to AI.

Hybrid format and schedule

Attend in person at The Acorn Group, Atlantic Pavilion, Albert Dock, Liverpool L3 4AE, or follow the published YouTube livestream. The online attendee link is also available through Meetup.

  • 18:00: Doors open
  • 18:20: Pizza, with vegan options available
  • 18:40: Introduction and welcome
  • 19:00: Speaker begins
  • Around 21:00: Close…

Register for this event

Create With Conference · Brighton

The UK's leading event for AI builders.

600+ builders, honest implementation stories and hands-on workshops, once a year. The next edition is being planned.

The main stage at Create With 2026 with a full room
Hackathon participants with their laptops
A panel on the main stage

Running an AI event in Liverpool?

List it here, free.

Meetups, workshops and conferences go in front of thousands of builders after a quick review.

List your event