.NET 11: Runtime Async, Native AOT, and AI Application Development Tools

At the Microsoft Build 2026 conference, the company spoke in detail about the key innovations of .NET 11. The update includes an accelerated SDK with support for Native AOT, new capabilities for working with AI agents, improvements to System.Text.Json, and built-in support for the JSON Lines format. One of the main announcements was Runtime Async, a new asynchronous execution mechanism that improves performance, reduces the size of applications, and simplifies debugging. Microsoft also unveiled an initiative to improve memory security and a number of runtime optimizations that should make .NET a more efficient platform for cloud-native and AI-centric applications.