Kubernetes in the Wild report 2023

Kubernetes has rapidly become a foundational technology for cloud-native computing, serving as the "operating system" of the cloud due to its orchestration capabilities for microservice applications. A survey report analyzing production data from thousands of organizations using the Dynatrace platform reveals the widespread adoption of Kubernetes, driven by the need for advanced platform features such as security, observability, and CI/CD technologies. The report highlights a significant shift towards cloud-hosted Kubernetes clusters, which grew at an annual rate of 127% in 2022, outpacing on-premises deployments, with most being managed by major cloud providers like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud. It also notes the rising importance of auxiliary workloads, reflecting the diverse use cases organizations find for Kubernetes, including security and messaging systems, and emphasizes the role of open-source software in enriching the Kubernetes ecosystem. Java, Go, and Node.js are identified as the top programming languages for Kubernetes workloads, highlighting the platform's support for polyglot programming. The study, based on data from January 2021 to September 2022, underlines the growing complexity and capabilities of Kubernetes as it becomes integral to modern enterprise infrastructure.