Kubernetes gives us powerful primitives, but a collection of primitives does not automatically become a developer platform. Platform teams are often left stitching together CI systems, GitOps, portals, observability stacks, and policy engines, only to expose the resulting complexity to developers.
This talk shares the architectural thinking behind OpenChoreo, an open-source, modular platform that introduces higher-level abstractions on top of Kubernetes and other CNCF projects. I'll walk through how OpenChoreo separates concerns using control, data, CI, and observability planes, and how this approach reduces developer cognitive load while preserving strong governance for platform engineers.
You'll learn how to design meaningful abstractions, when to hide and when to expose Kubernetes primitives, and how to balance developer experience with platform control. OpenChoreo brings together development workflows, a Backstage-powered portal, CI/CD, GitOps, and observability without turning Kubernetes into a developer-facing API. If you're building or struggling with an internal developer platform, this talk is for you.
Amila heads the engineering team at WSO2. With over 15 years in the software industry—14 of them at WSO2—he has played a key role in shaping cloud-based solutions. Amila has led multiple teams, including WSO2 Cloud and Choreo, driving innovation in software development, deployment, and cloud operations. His extensive expertise spans the entire software lifecycle, from development to scalable cloud infrastructure.
