Cosmonic aims to streamline the deployment of complex applications across diverse cloud environments leveraging WebAssembly (Wasm) technology. In this episode, Dan Norris, Director of Infrastructure and Taylor Thomas, Director of Engineering at Cosmonic, discuss Cosmonic’s platform and the open-source technologies it harnesses, and the company’s recent contribution of wasmCloud Operator to CNCF. Norris says, “We’re trying to just make it easier for everyone to build their applications and deploy them seamlessly on any cloud or infrastructure.”

Cosmonic’s platform for running complex applications across various clouds

• Cosmonic aims to simplify running complex apps across clouds with Wasm technology. Norris explains how they are making it easier for people to build and deploy their applications on any cloud or infrastructure.
• Norris discusses wasmCloud, a CNCF project that serves as a framework for developing backend applications using Wasm. He tells us about Cosmonic’s relationship with the technologies and how they are helping companies adopt these technologies.
• Thomas elaborates on wasmCloud’s status as a CNCF project and Cosmonic’s contributions. The open-source project aims to ensure stability and long-term reliability for users.

Kubernetes, WebAssembly, and open source trends in the cloud computing industry

• Norris discusses Cosmonic’s contribution of wasmCloud Operator to CNCF. He describes how it bridges the gap between Kubernetes and wasmCloud simplifying the deployment of wasmCloud applications in Kubernetes clusters.
• Thomas discusses the importance of compatibility and integration with existing technologies like Kubernetes, noting the significant investments businesses have made in them.
• Norris explains how wasmCloud Operator’s flexibility allows wasmCloud to reach places where Kubernetes might not be suitable like edge devices or smaller colocation setups.
• Thomas views Wasm as the next evolutionary step beyond containers and Kubernetes, capable of running on various infrastructures including bare metal, VMs, and containers.
• Thomas discusses the two emerging models around Wasm: the wrap model, whose components are treated like containers, and the alongside model, which is integrated with Kubernetes APIs, allowing bridging into other environments.

Open-source WebAssembly project Cosmonic

• Norris discusses the importance of open source for Cosmonic, emphasizing its foundation as a CNCF project.
• Norris stresses their open-core, open-source-first approach and their goal to provide value-add features while ensuring the longevity and accessibility of the technology through open-source principles.
• Thomas underscores the importance of genuine openness in the Cosmonic project, contrasting it to fake open source where projects are technically open but effectively owned by single companies.
• Norris highlights plans to introduce new features to wasmCloud, such as multi-tenancy, and to enhance open-source frameworks. On the Cosmonic side, they are focusing on developing enterprise tools.
• Thomas mentions the goal to attain incubating status within the CNCF and he expects to see the release of other new features resulting from community needs in the future.

Guests: Dan Norris (LinkedIn) | Taylor Thomas (LinkedIn)
Company: Cosmonic (Twitter)
Show: Let’s Talk

This summary was written by Emily Nicholls.