The acquisition of VMware by Broadcom has sent shockwaves through the enterprise IT sector, with 81% of organizations now planning to migrate or modernize their virtual machines (VMs) to Kubernetes within two years, according to recent industry data. This seismic shift is driving vendors like Pure Storage and its subsidiary Portworx to position themselves as key enablers of this transition. At the 2025 Red Hat Summit in Boston, Venkat Ramakrishnan, Vice President and General Manager of Portworx, outlined how Kubernetes is becoming the hypervisor of choice for enterprises seeking cost efficiency and agility.

According to Ramakrishnan, Broadcom’s decision to raise VMware prices while focusing on their “high-value target 600 customers” has created an inflection point in the industry. This move has prompted many enterprises to seek alternatives for their virtualization needs.

Kubernetes as the Hypervisor of Choice

At the Red Hat Summit 2025, Portworx announced its solution for organizations looking to migrate from VMware: Portworx for Kubernetes Virtualization, specifically designed to work with Red Hat OpenShift virtualization. The solution is competitively priced at the same level as OpenShift virtualization engine—approximately $2,500 per node—aiming to significantly lower the total cost of ownership compared to rising VMware prices.

“We are seeing more and more customers increasingly choosing Kubernetes as their hypervisor of choice,” Ramakrishnan explained. “It helps them unify container and VM data management under a single control plane, enables them to operate in a cloud operating model, and makes it easier to onboard their workloads into the cloud.”

Why Kubernetes? The Four Pathways to Modernization  

While acknowledging that some enterprises may stick with VMware, Ramakrishnan outlined four virtualization pathways Pure Storage supports:

• VMware (for existing users)
• Alternative hypervisors (e.g., Nutanix)
• Cloud providers (AWS, Azure, etc.)
• Kubernetes (as a hypervisor for hybrid and multi-cloud environments).

The latter, he argued, is gaining momentum due to its ability to future-proof IT stacks. “Kubernetes is the only platform that natively supports modern workloads like AI, machine learning, and 5G,” he said. “It’s not just about cost—it’s about preparing for the next wave of innovation.”

Economic Drivers Similar to Electric Car Adoption

Ramakrishnan drew an interesting parallel between Kubernetes adoption and the rise of electric vehicles: “Sometimes it’s economic reasons that drive technology adoption. You see that as the primary reason how electric cars became popular because gas is getting super expensive. The same thing is happening here—there is an economic reason behind why Kubernetes virtualization is now getting deployed in production.”

Beyond cost savings, Ramakrishnan emphasized that Kubernetes delivers “developer experience at scale,” allowing large development teams to standardize environments while meeting security, cost, and compliance controls. “When you enable thousands of developers to operate at a rapid speed and build, ship, and iterate on apps, we saw Kubernetes proliferate in the industry,” he explained.

Portworx’s Role

As a data management software provider for Kubernetes and containers, Portworx sees supporting VM workloads as a natural extension of its services. The company has been partnering with Red Hat to help customers migrate from legacy VM management solutions to OpenShift virtualization.

“We are delivering port works for virtualization, and we are delivering the same experience [as traditional VM solutions]. Under the hood, it is Kubernetes, it is Portworx, but for the customers, we’re delivering the same experience,” Ramakrishnan said.

With Kubernetes already proven in production across millions of nodes worldwide—from cruise ships to department store point-of-sale systems—Ramakrishnan believes it represents the ideal choice for modernizing virtual infrastructure, positioning Kubernetes as not just an alternative but the future of enterprise virtualization.

Conclusion: The Kubernetes Era is Here

The Red Hat Summit underscored a clear message: Kubernetes is no longer optional for enterprises. With Portworx and Pure Storage leading the charge, organizations now have the tools to transition away from costly legacy systems while embracing innovation. As Ramakrishnan put it, “The future of IT is Kubernetes—and it’s happening faster than ever.”

Guest: Venkat Ramakrishnan
Company: Portworx by Pure Storage
Show: KubeStruck