Upstream@AKS is a conversation series focused on Azure's upstream contributions to Kubernetes and other open source projects. The show explores how Azure team members are building the future of open source projects foundational to Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS).
Kubernetes AI Conformance: with Rita Zhang: Upstream@AKS
Lachie Evenson and Rita Zhang talk about Kubernetes AI Conformance.Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share your thoughts or questions in the comments!Related LinksAI Conformance Working Group: https://github.com/kubernetes/community/tree/master/wg-ai-conformancehttps://github.com/cncf/ai-conformance
#kubernetes #community #ai #microsoft
27 Oct 2025
Breaking into Big Tech and pro-tips for your 1st KubeCon: with Morgan Brown: Upstream@AKS
Lachie Evenson and Morgan Brown talk about how recent graduates and people new to tech can land their Big Tech opportunities. Morgan talks about her own journey after college. They also talk discuss an initiative that Morgan spearheads along with the CNCF foundation- trying to give back to the college students community.Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share your thoughts or questions in the comments!Related LinksKubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2025: https://events.linuxfoundation.org/kubecon-cloudnativecon-north-america/#kubernetes #community #bigtech #microsoft #college #recentgrads
20 Oct 2025
Transforming Observability with AI: with Qasim Sarfaraz: Upstream@AKS: Azure Kubernetes Service
Lachie Evenson and Qasim Sarfraz discuss how AI is transforming observability with Inspektor Gadget and MCP servers for Kubernetes observability.
Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share your thoughts or questions in the comments!
Related Links
CNCF: https://www.cncf.io/
Inspektor Gadget GitHub repository : https://github.com/inspektor-gadget/inspektor-gadget
Inspektor Gadget Headlamp plugin: https://github.com/inspektor-gadget/headlamp-plugin
Gadgets on Artifact Hub: https://artifacthub.io/packages/search?kind=22
Inspektor Gadget MCP Server (Discover, Configure, and Analyze output using Inspektor Gadget): https://github.com/inspektor-gadget/ig-mcp-server
AKS Model Context Protocol server (A bridge between AI tools & AKS): https://github.com/Azure/aks-mcp
Blog: Leveraging Real-Time insights via the AKS-MCP Server: https://blog.aks.azure.com/2025/08/20/real-time-observability-in-aks-mcp-server
VS Code Agent Mode: https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/copilot/chat/chat-agent-mode
Cagent K8s Debugger: https://github.com/docker/cagent/blob/main/examples/k8s_debugger.yaml
Kubernetes slack: https://github.com/inspektor-gadget/inspektor-gadget?tab=readme-ov-file#slack
Hello world gadget: https://inspektor-gadget.io/docs/latest/gadget-devel/hello-world-gadget
#kubernetes
#ai
#inspektorgadget
6 Oct 2025
Istio & Upstream Networking: with Keith Mattix: Upstream@AKS: Azure Kubernetes Service
Lachie Evenson and Keith Mattix talk about Istio and Service Meshes in the cloud native world.
Discover how Istio's ambient mode simplifies onboarding, reduces costs, and enables organizations to scale securely and efficiently.
Learn about the latest innovations in application-layer networking, including AI-driven routing, Gateway API advancements, and token-based rate limiting for LLM workloads.
Whether you're new to Kubernetes or managing complex microservices, this discussion offers practical insights and community resources to help you succeed on your cloud native journey.
Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share your thoughts or questions in the comments!
Related LinksCNCF: https://www.cncf.io/Istio: https://github.com/istio/istio/Istio Mutual TLS: https://istio.io/latest/docs/concepts/security/#mutual-tls-authenticationIstio Ambient Mode: https://istio.io/latest/docs/ambient/overview/Gateway API: https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/gateway-apiGateway API Inference Extension: https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/gateway-api-inference-extensionWorking Group AI Gateway: https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/wg-ai-gateway
29 Sept 2025
Kaito: AI/ML inference & tuning in Kubernetes: with Ernest Wong: Upstream@AKS: Azure Kubernetes Svc
Lachie Evenson and Ernest Wong discuss Kaito.
KAITO is an operator that automates the AI/ML model inference or tuning workload in a Kubernetes cluster. The target models are popular open-sourced large models such as phi-4 and llama.Related LinksCNCF: https://www.cncf.io/KAITO: https://github.com/kaito-project/kaitoGet involved with KAITO: https://github.com/kaito-project/kaito?tab=readme-ov-file#get-involvedPackaging models as a container image: https://kaito-project.github.io/kaito/docs/model-as-oci-artifactsKAITO preset models: https://kaito-project.github.io/kaito/docs/presetsGPU Operator: https://github.com/NVIDIA/gpu-operatorRetrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG): https://kaito-project.github.io/kaito/docs/rag/
22 Sept 2025
Dalec: Secure Packages & Container Builds: with Jeremy Rickard: Upstream@AKS- Azure Kubernetes Svc
Lachie Evenson and Jeremy discuss Dalec. Dalec is a cloud-native solution that ensures a secure software supply chain by enabling users to define declarative specifications for building system packages and container images. It combines declarative configuration, secure defaults, and automation to deliver a scalable and auditable build system for modern infrastructure.Related LinksCNCF: https://www.cncf.io/Dalec: https://github.com/Azure/dalecDalec quickstart: https://azure.github.io/dalec/quickstartDalec CNCF Sandbox application: https://github.com/cncf/sandbox/issues/396Flatcar: https://www.flatcar.org/
15 Sept 2025
Wassette-Rust-powered Bridge between Wasm & MCP with Joe Zhou: Upstream @ AKS - Azure Kubernetes Service
Lachie Evenson and Joe Zhou discuss Wassette, a security-oriented runtime that runs WebAssembly Components via MCP.
Related Links:
Model Context Protocol (MCP) (https://github.com/modelcontextprotocol)
Open Container Initiative (OCI) (https://opencontainers.org/)
Introduction blog post: https://aka.ms/hello-wassette (https://aka.ms/hello-wassette)
GitHub repo at https://github.com/microsoft/wassette (https://github.com/microsoft/wassette)
Demo video at https://aka.ms/hello-wassette-youtube (https://aka.ms/hello-wassette-youtube)#wassette channel on the Microsoft Open Source Discord (https://discord.gg/microsoft-open-source)
#kubernetes #wasette #opensource
8 Sept 2025
Gatekeeper & Secure Supply Chain with Sertac Ozercan: Upstream @ AKS - Azure Kubernetes Service
Lachie Evenson and Sertaç Özercan discuss how Gatekeeper, an Open Policy Agent subproject which is an admission controller for Kubernetes, helps ensure end-to-end security by default.Relevant Links:CNCF: https://cncf.ioGatekeeper: https://open-policy-agent.github.io/gatekeeper/website/SBOMs: https://www.cisa.gov/sbomSLSA Framework: https://slsa.dev/Github Artifact Attestations: https://docs.github.com/en/actions/concepts/security/artifact-attestationsRatify: https://ratify.dev/Azure Policy: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/governance/policy/overviewImage Integrity: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/aks/image-integrity?tabs=azure-cliCOPA: https://project-copacetic.github.io/copacetic/website/CNCF Tag Security: https://tag-security.cncf.io/Enforce admission policies with artifact attestations in Kubernetes using OPA Gatekeeper: https://github.blog/changelog/2025-06-23-enforce-admission-policies-with-artifact-attestations-in-kubernetes-using-opa-gatekeeper/#kubernetes #security #supplychain #gatekeeper #microsoftazure #copacetic #ratify
3 Sept 2025
Future of Kubernetes Auth with Mo Khan: Upstream @ AKS - Azure Kubernetes Service
Lachie Evenson and Mo Khan discuss innovations in Kubernetes Auth, led by Azure team members.
Topics include images, authorization and authentication, encryption and key management, and more.
Relevant Links:
CNCF: https://cncf.io (https://www.cncf.io/)
Kubernetes SIGs: https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/sig-list.md (https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/sig-list.md)
ContribCard: https://contribcard.cncf.io/ (https://contribcard.cncf.io/)
KubeCon: https://www.cncf.io/kubecon-cloudnativecon-events/ (https://www.cncf.io/kubecon-cloudnativecon-events/)
KEPs: https://github.com/kubernetes/enhancements?tab=readme-ov-file#is-my-thing-an-enhancement (https://github.com/kubernetes/enhancements?tab=readme-ov-file#is-my-thing-an-enhancement)
Kubernetes SIG Auth: https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/sig-auth/README.md (https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/sig-auth/README.md)
#kubernetes #auth #sigauth #contribcard #microsoftazure #kep
25 Aug 2025
AI-Aware Kubernetes Infrastructure with Jack Francis: Upstream@AKS - Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
Lachie Evenson and Jack Francis discuss today's approach to AI-aware Kubernetes infrastructure.
Topics includeDynamic Resource Allocation, Cluster Autoscaling (Cluster Autoscaler and Karpenter), and how Kubernetes is powering the AI future.
Jack Francis is a Principal Software Engineering Lead focusing on Cloud Native Ecosystem within Microsoft's Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) team.
Reference Links
CNCF: https://www.cncf.io/
Kubernetes SIGs: https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/sig-list.md
#kubernetes #ai #infrastructure #opensource
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