The New Stack Podcast Kelsey Hightower, AWS's Eswar Bala on Open Source's Evolution
Apr 17, 2025
Kelsey Hightower, a Kubernetes pioneer focused on making complex systems accessible, teams up with Eswar Bala, AWS's EKS Director, who specializes in container orchestration. They discuss the grassroots origins of open source and its role in democratizing tech access. Hightower shares his personal journey and the importance of contributions over credentials. Bala highlights AWS's commitment to open source, introducing projects like Karpenter and Cedar. Their conversation emphasizes collaboration and how community-driven innovation is reshaping the cloud landscape.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Open Source Entry Point
- Kelsey Hightower learned about open source through Linux magazines and CDs.
- This allowed him to enter the tech industry without traditional credentials.
Open Source and Career Sovereignty
- Open source allows individuals to control their careers.
- Early Kubernetes contributors were judged by their contributions, not credentials.
Kubernetes Early Days
- Kubernetes initially faced scalability limitations, with a 30-node limit.
- Amazon's support of Kubernetes through EKS signaled its long-term viability.