KubeCon EU Unofficial SRE track: the talks you cannot miss

This year's KubeCon + CloudNative EU conference is set to unfold in the enchanting city of Paris, known for its rich history of love and rebellion. The event boasts an impressive lineup of 300+ talks spread over more than 15 diverse tracks. While there isn't a track specifically labeled as “SRE,” the realm of Site Reliability Engineering is vast and touches on numerous topics covered at the conference.

To save you the hassle of sifting through the extensive schedule, we've handpicked a selection of standout sessions that are a must-see. These sessions cover a wide range of topics, from leveraging AI for better observability and debuggability, navigating the nuances of Service Level Objectives (SLOs), tackling privilege escalation challenges, to enhancing the experience for developers working with Kubernetes.

Join us in Paris for a series of inspiring talks that promise to rejuvenate your approach to handling incidents and motivate you towards achieving proactive reliability in your systems! And don’t forget to pop by Rootly’s booth (D36) to say hi!

0. The Platform Rock-Paper-Scissors: Build, Adopt, Buy

Speakers: Jorge Lainfiesta (Rootly), Jinhong Brejnholt (Saxo Bank), Edgaras Petovradžius (LEGO Group), Leena Mooneeram (Chainalysis), Victor Araujo (Wolt)

Deciding how to build your tech platform? This panel dives into whether it's better to create your own solutions, use open-source, or buy from vendors. It's a must for anyone looking to make smart choices that keep both developers and budgets happy, without overwhelming the team. For SREs, this is your chance to gain insights into managing complex systems efficiently. Learn from those who've navigated these decisions, and find out how to adjust when things don't go as planned.

Learn more

1. Observability TAG: A Review and the Rise of Gen-AI Observability

Speakers: Alolita Sharma & Matt Young (Apple), Vijay Samuel (eBay), Bartłomiej Płotka (Google)

This session dives into the accomplishments and future initiatives of the Observability Technical Advisory Group (TAG) within the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF). The speakers will discuss the strides made in observability, including the integration of Generative AI technologies. Attendees will learn about the advancements in query language standardization and the collaborative efforts to harness the power of Gen AI for enhanced observability solutions. This talk is a must-attend for those interested in the intersection of AI and cloud-native technologies.
Learn More

2. Prompt: Help Me Debug a Cluster!

Speakers: Anusha Ragunathan & Lili Wan (Intuit Inc)

Intuit's exploration of integrating generative AI with Kubernetes for improved debuggability is a game-changer. This talk will cover the development and application of Cluster Golden Signals alongside AI to swiftly identify and remediate issues within Kubernetes clusters. It's a deep dive into practical, AI-enhanced solutions for real-world problems faced by SREs daily.
Learn More

3. Playing Defense: The Reactive Cloud Native Security Battle

Speaker: Ayse Kaya (Slim.AI)

With cloud-native security challenges on the rise, this session is a timely exploration of the landscape based on recent research. Ayse Kaya will share insights into achieving security Service Level Objectives (SLOs), navigating regulatory pressures, and tackling the complexities of the supply chain. This talk is an essential guide for SREs looking to shift from reactive to proactive security practices.
Learn More

4. I'll Let Myself in: Kubernetes Privilege Escalation Tactics

Speakers: Andrew Martin & Iain Smart (ControlPlane)

This session is a thrilling exploration of Kubernetes security, designed for SREs, security teams, and penetration testers. Learn about vulnerabilities, privilege escalation tactics, and best practices for securing your clusters. If you're interested in cloud-native security, this is a can't-miss talk.
Learn More

5. Developers Demand UX for K8s!

Speakers: Máirín Duffy (Red Hat, Inc.) & Conor Cowman (Atlantic Technological University)

This talk addresses a critical gap in Kubernetes: the developer experience. Through extensive user research, the speakers will present insights into the challenges developers face with Kubernetes and propose solutions to improve its UX. This session is crucial for anyone interested in making Kubernetes more accessible and efficient for developers.
Learn More

Find Rootly in Paris!

We’ll be around for the whole week, and you find us in our booth (D36) in the Solutions Showcase area. There’s plenty of other interesting talks where our team will be hanging out as well. Remember that you can use the Sched app to book the talks you’re interested in and get reminders of hours and locations. See you there!