Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF)

CNCF describes itself as the open source, vendor-neutral hub of cloud native computing, dedicated to making cloud native ubiquitous. It is part of the nonprofit Linux Foundation and provides support, oversight and direction for cloud native projects. The foundation brings together developers, end users and vendors, and runs open source developer conferences. Its flagship website carries information on members, projects, events, case studies and its blog.

• Part of the nonprofit Linux Foundation
• Vendor-neutral hub of cloud native computing
• Mission: make cloud native ubiquitous
• Hosts critical components of global technology infrastructure

CNCF hosts projects that it describes as the foundation of cloud and AI native computing, among them Kubernetes, Envoy and Prometheus. Projects are organised by maturity level across graduated, incubating and sandbox tiers. The foundation reports a project and contributor community spanning many countries.

• 228 projects in total
• 39 graduated projects
• 38 incubating projects
• 151 sandbox projects
• 334K contributors and 22.3M contributions across 193 countries

CNCF has more than 700 members, spanning organisations that build and sell cloud native technology. Silver Membership is aimed at startups, scale-ups, academic institutions, nonprofits and established technology companies, and bundles training discounts, logo placement on the CNCF website and interactive landscape, press and content opportunities, and event discounts. Members nominate contact roles covering representation and voting, billing, marketing and technical matters; the technical contact is invited to the Technical Oversight Committee (TOC) mailing list and public TOC meetings. Membership enquiries are handled through the Member Help Desk, and new points of contact can arrange a welcome call by emailing support@cncf.io.

• More than 700 members
• Silver Membership tier for companies, academia and nonprofits
• Contact roles: representative/voting, billing, marketing, technical
• Ten LF Education coupons for 50% off training or certification exams
• Discounts on CNCF and Linux Foundation certifications such as CKA and CKAD
• Support email: support@cncf.io

CNCF supports participation from ambassadors and maintainers through to first-time contributors, stating that both technical and creative backgrounds are welcome. The Cloud Native Ambassador programme provides support, training, mentorship and guidance to community leaders, who must be 18 or older, sign the Ambassador Standards of Excellence annually, and be active in at least two areas of expertise such as project contribution, mentoring, localisation, SIG or TAG membership, speaking or event organising. The End User Contributor Program recognises end-user organisations that have made a significant contribution to the CNCF ecosystem in the previous 18 months, granting access to end user-only events at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon, end user groups, private forums and eligibility for the End User Technical Advisory Board. The Video Spotlight programme invites members at Silver level and above to submit short videos, at one per quarter.

• Cloud Native Ambassador programme with published Standards of Excellence
• End User Contributor Program with 18-month contribution requirement
• End User Technical Advisory Board (TAB) eligibility
• Video Spotlight for Silver-and-above members, videos up to two minutes
• Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs) coordinating specific areas

CNCF runs open source developer conferences, including KubeCon + CloudNativeCon, and supports community-run events. The Kubernetes Community Days (KCD) programme, modelled on DevOpsDays, backs locally defined events that grow and sustain Kubernetes and other cloud native communities. Support includes core branding, centralised tools and templates, monthly CNCF support meetings and weekly assistance by email and Slack, plus monetary sponsorship based on need and geographic location, with financial transparency required. Events are approved through an application process, with three support tiers, and the Linux Foundation must be named on event insurance.

• KubeCon + CloudNativeCon flagship conferences
• KCD programme with three CNCF support tiers
• Application-based approval, replacing GitHub issue requests
• Registration limits and co-location rules apply
• Local Cloud Native Community Group (CNCG) meetups as an alternative

CNCF recognises Kubernetes Training Partners (KTP), a vetted tier of providers with experience in cloud native technology training. KTP requirements include CNCF membership, existing Kubernetes Certified Service Provider (KCSP) status, reselling the CKA and/or CKAD exams, instructors who have passed those exams, and instructor-led courses mapped to them. KTPs may use the CNCF Authorized Kubernetes Training Curriculum, which has been open sourced and maps to the Kubernetes certification exams. The KCSP programme is a separate pre-qualified tier of service providers offering Kubernetes support, consulting, professional services and training.

• Kubernetes Training Partner (KTP) programme
• Kubernetes Certified Service Provider (KCSP) programme
• CNCF Authorized Kubernetes Training Curriculum, open sourced
• CKA and CKAD exam alignment and reseller requirement

Alongside its flagship website, CNCF maintains a set of community sites and tools. The cloud native landscape organises open source projects and proprietary products into categories to give an overview of the ecosystem, and is managed on GitHub with community contributions. Other resources include the Cloud Native Glossary, the Cloud Native Maturity Model, the Cloud Native Architecture site, a contributor guide for hosted projects, a job board, a merchandise store whose proceeds are reinvested into the foundation, DevStats for participation metrics and Artifact Hub for Kubernetes packages.

• CNCF Landscape, managed on GitHub
• Cloud Native Glossary
• Cloud Native Maturity Model
• Cloud Native Architecture site
• Contributor guide for hosted projects
• CNCF job board, free to post
• CNCF store, proceeds reinvested in the foundation
• DevStats and Artifact Hub

CNCF Ambassadors are required to comply with the CNCF Code of Conduct, the Linux Foundation Events Code of Conduct and other applicable CNCF policies, and are asked not to use community spaces or their role to promote political causes. The Standards of Excellence set expectations on kindness and inclusion, professional conduct, respectful handling of disagreements and promotion of the CNCF brand, and set out consequences for violations. CNCF's website follows the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, aiming for Level AA, using W3C-compliant HTML and CSS. Accessibility features include a skip link, checked colour contrast, functionality retained at all zoom levels, respect for reduced-motion settings and ARIA markup for screen readers, with complex diagrams and code images identified as areas still needing work.

• CNCF Code of Conduct and Linux Foundation Events Code of Conduct
• Policy on political neutrality in community spaces
• WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the stated accessibility target
• Skip link, colour contrast, page zoom, reduced motion, ARIA markup