Introducing Ambassador Cloud Developer Edition

Get Kubernetes Superpowers & Write Less YAML

Memes aside, most people think of Kubernetes as a container orchestrator for cloud-native infrastructure. Today, though, Kubernetes is much more than a container runtime for DevOps teams to use. It’s an entire operating system for building and running cloud applications at scale, which means it includes a huge breadth of capabilities for monitoring, scaling, securing, and deploying containers.

The breadth of the Kubernetes ecosystem is both a feature and a bug. Today, it’s impossible for developers to write code and manage Kubernetes at the same time. These are two fundamentally different domains which have forced developers to “shift left” into a world of complexity and frustration.

So we’re excited to announce the general availability of Ambassador Cloud Developer Edition. If you’re an individual developer or part of a small team, Ambassador Cloud now lets you set up a “developer control plane” to code, ship, and run apps using Kubernetes — with more speed, confidence, and far less YAML. In fact, we think you should be able to code a change, ship it, and manage the app on a production cluster in 5 minutes.

This HUDs for You: A Developer “Heads-Up Display” built for Kubernetes

As part of Developer Edition, we’re giving developers a context-aware Heads-Up Display that lets you manage your apps and services throughout the entire development lifecycle.

Just as Ironman had Jarvis to help him, we think developers should have a trusty sidekick that visualizes complex Kubernetes environments, suggests important actions to prevent disasters, and automates repetitive tasks.

Developer-First Kubernetes: An Integrated Toolchain for Cloud-Native App Dev

Unlike tools for operators which are infrastructure-centric, Ambassador Cloud is based on a developer-first workflow. This means an experience based on apps and services vs. clusters and compute resources. As developers progress from development to production, Ambassador Cloud enables:

• Fast local development & testing for Kubernetes on any platform — now with Windows support: Combining Telepresence and the Kubernetes API, you can build and debug locally using your favorite tools and operating systems including Linux, Mac, and now Windows. Iterate and test instantly without compromising between your production environment and local resource constraints. Develop locally using personal intercepts of relevant services without disrupting your teammates and production. Then share that service directly with your team and collaborate using preview URLs.
• Easy canary releases into your CI/CD process without writing YAML: Ambassador Cloud is fully integrated into your GitOps workflow and lets you deploy canary releases with push-button simplicity using CNCF open source projects Argo and Emissary-ingress. Developer Edition now also supports Gitlab in addition to Github workflows.

• High-confidence production deployments and incident management: Ambassador Cloud includes Automated Configuration Analysis (as part of the Edge Stack 2.0) that inspects configuration changes that may impact production clusters and alerts you to resolve conflicts before you merge. You’ll also get a clear picture of all your services in the Ambassador Cloud Dev Portal. It visualizes real-time data from the Kubernetes API, Swagger, and OpenAPI docs into human-readable metadata to help you discover, inspect, and take action on critical information to resolve incidents across all your environments.​​

A New, All-You-Can-Learn Developer Experience for Kubernetes

We’re also excited to announce the Kubernetes Developer Learning Center, a new learning destination for developers alongside our Dev House virtual conference and workshops taking place this week during KubeCon NA. The Kubernetes Developer Learning Center combines a variety of practical resources, open source tools, and access to expert mentors to help you learn practical skills as you adopt Kubernetes and also prepare for certifications including CNCF’s official Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) exam.

Get Started Today

• Try Ambassador Cloud Developer Edition — first 1,000 developers to sign up get a free one-year subscription! Starting at the end of year, pricing for Developer Edition will begin at $30 USD per month (prepaid annually).
• Take the “Kubernetes in 5” Challenge — code, ship, and run an app using Kubernetes in less than 5 minutes and win prizes including Amazon gift cards and a rare 1,500-piece Lego container ship!
• Visit the Kubernetes Developer Learning Center and level up your cloud-native skills for free!