In 2018, Google committed to providing $9 million in Google Cloud Platform credits, distributed over three years, to the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF). This funding was intended to support the operation and advancement of the infrastructure powering the Kubernetes project, resources Google previously directly managed for the community. Today, the organizations have announced Google will supplement this initial grant with an additional $3 million yearly donation to the CNCF, designed to “ensure the continued well-being, high quality, and dependable operation of Kubernetes and its surrounding ecosystem.”

Google explains that these funds will be allocated to the testing and infrastructure essential for the Kubernetes project. Currently, the project processes over 2,300 monthly pull requests, initiating approximately 400,000 integration test runs, which collectively consume around 300,000 core hours on GCP.

“We are very pleased to be able to continue this investment,” stated Aparna Sinha, a director of product management at Google and chairperson of the CNCF governing board. “We recognize the critical importance of maintaining the long-term health, quality, and stability of Kubernetes and its ecosystem, and we are delighted to continue our partnership with the Cloud Native Computing Foundation. Ultimately, our aim is to empower developers to work without constraints and to ensure Kubernetes remains a robust, reliable, and widely adopted standard for their endeavors.”

Sinha also highlighted Google’s substantial code contributions to the project, totaling 128,000 contributions in the past year. Beyond these technical contributions, the team actively supports the community through engagement and mentorship, in addition to the financial support announced today.

“The Kubernetes project is experiencing rapid growth, with frequent releases and significant changes,” explained Priyanka Sharma, the General Manager of the CNCF. “All of this requires substantial resources. [ … ] This $3 million contribution directly addresses that need, providing the Kubernetes project with the assurance of sufficient credits to operate effectively for an entire year. This stability is crucial, as it allows developers and contributors to concentrate on enhancing features and continually improving Kubernetes.”

It is important to note that while both Google and the CNCF present a unified front, some concerns have been raised regarding Google’s handling of the Istio service mesh project, which was initially incubated by Google and IBM several years ago. A proposal to integrate Istio under the CNCF umbrella in 2017 was not realized. This year, Istio became a founding project of Open Usage Commons, an organization primarily focused on trademark issues rather than project governance. These developments have led some members of the open-source community to question Google’s dedication to organizations like the CNCF.

“Google supports numerous open-source projects. [ … ] There are many, with many under the Linux Foundation and others operating independently,” Sinha responded when questioned about this. “There is nothing new to report. Our focus with the CNCF is specifically on Kubernetes, which represents our largest contribution of time and commitment compared to all other projects we are involved in.”