At KubeCon Europe, the Techstrong Gang debates Microsoft’s new Kubernetes UI, Google’s cluster orchestration tool, and the future of observability—asking if open source wins by default or if we’re just stuck with too many tools.

Alan, Mike and Andi Mann delve into the forces driving adoption of platform engineering before discussing why it remains so challenging to convince application developers to adopt best DevSecOps practices.

Then the gang dives into how much momentum is there really behind IT teams looking to migrate away from VMware platforms.

Mike, Jon, Bonnie and Stephen Foskett, president of the Tech Field Day arm of The Futurum Group, delve into the reasons why the X social media platform is being merged by Elon Musk into xAI before discussing why Oracle might be overly reticent to confirm a cloud security breach.

Then, the gang takes a look at eMerge Americas, a conference in Miami that shines a spotlight on emerging technologies such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence (AI).

The gang previews KubeCon Europe 2025 and highlights key trends like AI-driven Kubernetes management, platform engineering and WebAssembly at the edge. Then, they talk about simplifying cloud-native complexity and using symbolic AI for practical DevOps use cases. Lastly, the gang weighs in on Intel’s leadership shakeup and what’s next for its struggling foundry business.

Alan, Mike, Jon and Anne Ahola Ward discuss the implications of the imminent rise of mass customization before delving into the impact artificial intelligence (AI) is having on video production. Then the gang dives into research that shows how graphical processor units (GPUs) might be used to crack the encryption that cybercriminals rely on to launch ransomware attacks.

Alan, Mike, Mitch, Guy Currier, chief analyst for The Visible Impact arm of the Futurum Group, and Camberly Bates, a chief technology advisor at The Futurum Group, dive into the degree artificial intelligence (AI) agents will democratize business intelligence (BI).

Then the gang turns its attention to how AI agents will be applied to platform engineering before discussing why cloud computing remains so difficult for IT teams to master.

Alan, Mike, Amanda and Jon delve into the security implications of a 23andMe bankruptcy that might result in DNA data being more widely shared than anticipated.

Then the gang debates the degree to which there might be a socio-economic gap emerging in terms of artificial intelligence (AI) adoption before appreciating the positive impact AI will have on healthcare.

Alan, Mike, Bonnie and Stephen Foskett, president of the Tech Field Day arm of The Futurum Group, dive into the root causes of cloud storage costs that are spiraling out of control before highlighting the latest advances in networking discussed at a recentTech Field Day event.

Then the gang turns its attention to a biodiversity initiative from Google that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to help protect natural habitats.

Alan, Mike, Tracy Ragan and Robert Reeves take a hard look at the state of the IT job market.

Then the gang dives into a $6.5B acquisition of Ampere, a supplier of semiconductors for artificial intelligence (AI) applications, being made by SoftBank before debating the merits of an open source large language model (LLM) for cybersecurity project launched by Trend Micro.

Alan, Mike, Mitch, Jon and Lisa Martin dive into a set of DevOps market research reports from The Futurum Group that find increased levels of maturity among organizations adopting best practices is driving a forecasted compound annual growth rate in excess of 9% through 2028.

Then, the gang discusses a Renaissance that is occurring with the arrival of Java 24 before musing about what it will mean for Disney Studios to build Star Wars droids infused with artificial intelligence (AI) with help from NVIDIA and Google DeepMind.