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Building a Java-Helidon Application using Github Copilot
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September 09, 2026
Abstract
Ask GitHub Copilot to build you a Helidon application and it has to guess. Helidon SE or MP? Helidon 3 APIs or Helidon 4? HttpService or Jakarta REST? Explicit composition or CDI? Without framework-specific context it produces code that looks correct, quietly mixes two programming models, and doesn't compile.
That's not a model problem. It's a context problem, and it's fixable.
In this session we'll build a Helidon 4 application with Copilot from an empty directory, a small customer service with routing, configuration, health checks and tests. Along the way, the API changes that trip Copilot up most and how to write a skill for your own framework.
You'll leave able to install the skill, bootstrap a Helidon 4 project with it and write one for the framework your team actually uses.
Presented by Suren Konathala
Suren Konathala is a Senior Technical Program Manager at Microsoft with 26 years in software engineering and enterprise architecture. He wrote the java-helidon skill merged into GitHub's Awesome Copilot project and the Java examples in GitHub's official Copilot SDK cookbook, and contributes to OpenJDK, Jakarta EE, Apache Sling and Oracle Helidon. He writes for Oracle's Helidon publication, is an IBM Champion, IEEE Senior Member. He lives in Frisco.
Location and Time
On the second Wednesday of each month, we meet as a group to discuss the latest and greatest Java related methodologies, technologies and tools. Our meeting space is provided by Improving and is located at 5445 Legacy Dr, Suite 100, Plano, TX 75024.
Social time starts at 6:30 PM, announcements and sponsorship information at 7:00 PM, followed by the presentation which ends by 9:00 PM. Our sponsors provide free food and drink during the social hour. After the presentation has come to an end, we hold a drawing where we give away prizes that are also made possible by our sponsors. We look forward to seeing you there!