CNCF Honors Innovators and Defenders with 2025 Community Awards at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America

Lifetime Achievement Award Top End User Award Top Committer Award Chop Wood Carry Water Award Outstanding Mentor Award Cloud Native Hero TAGGIE End User Case Study Contest Lorem Ipsum Honorees span end users, maintainers, mentors, and long-time contributors, reflecting the strength and diversity of the cloud native ecosystem Key Highlights CNCF announced the KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2025 Community Award winners for technical leadership, community dedication, mentorship, and end-user contributions. These honors reflect the diverse contributions that strengthen the entire cloud native ecosystem, defend open source from patent trolls via the Cloud Native Heroes Challenge, and highlight projects that underpin large-scale AI infrastructure. The global cloud native community benefits, encompassing over 270k contributors and 728 member organizations, as the awards celebrate sustained commitment and build community capacity for long-term health. Winners received their recognition and trophies during the award ceremony at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America in Atlanta on November 12, 2025. ATLANTA, KUBECON + CLOUDNATIVECON NORTH AMERICA—November 12, 2025— The Cloud Native Computing Foundation ® (CNCF®), which builds sustainable ecosystems for cloud native software, today announced the winners of the CNCF Community Awards at the annual KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America. Over the years, the CNCF Community Awards aim to recognize and highlight key contributors across all CNCF projects and Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs). These awards celebrate those committed to shaping the cloud native ecosystem, acknowledging outstanding contributions in areas such as technical leadership, documentation, mentorship, and end-user implementation. Winners were recognized and received their trophies during the event’s award ceremony. “This year’s award recipients reflect what it really takes to go above and beyond in sustaining the cloud native community,” said Chris Aniszczyk, CTO, CNCF. “From mentoring new contributors to maintaining docs to hosting community events, the contributors are doing the hard work that helps our projects grow, stay reliable, and move faster together. ” The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to longtime contributors who have significantly influenced cloud native technologies and demonstrated sustained commitment to the ecosystem. This award honors individuals whose efforts over the past decade have been instrumental in shaping and supporting the Kubernetes and CNCF communities.