Lightbend Adds Kubernetes for ‘Reactive’ Microservices

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Streaming and other data applications continue to be paired with microservices as streaming data shake up application designs targeting AI, machine learning and other data-driven use cases.

The latest to jump on the microservices bandwagon via the Kubernetes cluster orchestrator is Lightbend Inc., which this week launched the latest version of its data platform tuned to developing and running streaming applications. Those emerging applications require “elasticity,” the company notes, since streams of data flow continuously through application logic, analytics and queries—unlike traditional big data batch jobs.

Hence, Lightbend touts its ability to deliver “reactive” microservices as a way of harnessing streaming applications. The updated data platform unveiled Tuesday (Sept. 11) at the Strata conference in New York City doubles down on that approach with the integration of the de facto standard Kubernetes cluster orchestrator.

The reactive microservices approach is predicated on the assumption that AI, Internet of Things and machine learning applications have outgrown current big data architectures. Those streaming data applications rely on continuously queries rather than querying data at rest.

Since applications “now rely on real-time analytics and model serving, these streaming pipelines become a crucial part of the application,” said Jonas Bonér, Lightbend’s co-founder and CTO. “They share the same availability and scalability concerns as microservices. And like microservices, they must be easy to update without impacting the application.”

The addition of Kubernetes to its upgraded data application development platform combines a production-grade container orchestrator with current run-time tooling and programming abstractions, Lightbend noted. The platform also includes native integrations with Apache Spark, Apache Flink, Kafka Streams and other streaming data frameworks.

Launched in 2011 under the name Typesafe, Lightbend was founded by Martin Odersky, creator of the Scala programming language. Lightbend has been working with investor IBMon AI, cognitive and other distributed applications, most destined to run in the cloud. Last summer, Lightbend announced that IBM (NYSE: IBM) has extended their collaboration by leading a $15 million funding round that also included Intel Capital and a group of venture capital backers.

Lightbend’s customers include Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE: HPE) and Capital One (NYSE: COF).

Lightbend is the latest in a growing roster of data-driven application specialists to embrace Kubernetes as they seek to provide customers with more ways to shift big data workloads to the cloud via microservices.

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