At KubeCon + CloudNativeCon NA 2024, Gabriel L. Manor from Permit.io hosted a panel discussion titled "Policy Engines Showdown" to help developers navigate the complex landscape of policy engines like OPA, OpenFGA, Cedar, and Topaz. The session emphasized that each policy engine has its strengths and weaknesses, and the best choice depends on specific use cases, whether they prioritize speed, scalability, or determinism. Panelists discussed various aspects, including the distinction between policy-driven and data-driven engines, the trade-offs between centralized and decentralized deployments, and the choice between stateful and stateless engines. Multipurpose engines like OPA offer flexibility across different use cases, while single-purpose engines like Cedar provide clarity in access control scenarios. The discussion also highlighted the importance of scalability, performance, and ease of adoption, with a focus on testing, verification, and maintaining policy correctness. The session concluded with a call for community contributions to open-source projects like OPAL and Cedar Agent, encouraging developers to engage with these tools to enhance the ecosystem and build more secure, scalable applications.