Are you able to build something quickly to do some test runs against Windows Azure to see if it has the performance you need? You may also want to check out SQL Azure (part of the Windows Azure Platform), also in beta, to see if it can do what you need for DB performance.
As far as Windows Azure being early in its life, you are correct. However, it has been in beta for about a year and it is running Windows Server 2008, which has been in the market for almost two years. You may also want to look at the Windows Azure forums at http://bit.ly/MSDNWinAzureForum to get an idea of other people's experiences with it.
Have a great time at PDC. I'm sure finding Windows Azure experts there will be like finding coffee in Seattle :-), and you'll definitely find plenty of experienced Azure users at the Azure presentations.
As far as Windows Azure being early in its life, you are correct. However, it has been in beta for about a year and it is running Windows Server 2008, which has been in the market for almost two years. You may also want to look at the Windows Azure forums at http://bit.ly/MSDNWinAzureForum to get an idea of other people's experiences with it.
You can also get more info about Azure and its beta availability at http://bit.ly/WinAzurePlatformDevCenter
(Jason - working for M80, representing Microsoft)