Mirantis Unifies Cloud-Native and Legacy Workloads for AI Infrastructure Modernization

/ AI, Cloud, Infrastructure, Kubernetes, Virtualization
Mirantis Unifies Cloud-Native and Legacy Workloads for AI Infrastructure Modernization

The News:

Mirantis announced the release of Mirantis k0rdent Enterprise and k0rdent Virtualization, a Kubernetes-native platform unifying AI, containerized, and virtual machine (VM)-based workloads under a single control plane. These solutions aim to simplify infrastructure management and accelerate the deployment of high-performance AI pipelines, microservices, and traditional applications. To read more, visit the Mirantis press release.

Analysis:

As enterprises face mounting pressure to deliver AI-driven innovation while maintaining traditional services, hybrid infrastructure complexity has reached a tipping point. Analysts predict that 80% of enterprise workloads will run on cloud-native platforms by 2026, yet legacy VM-based environments continue to play a critical role in regulated and enterprise systems. Mirantis’ k0rdent platform responds directly to this dual challenge, bridging containers and VMs via a Kubernetes-native model. By eliminating silos and layering GitOps automation on top of k0s, the CNCF Sandbox Kubernetes distribution, k0rdent positions itself as a strategic enabler of hybrid infrastructure modernization.

The Role of k0rdent in AI Infrastructure Deployment

AI workloads are highly distributed and data-intensive, demanding fast provisioning, efficient scaling, and dynamic resource allocation. k0rdent Enterprise and k0rdent Virtualization offer unified workload orchestration to reduce infrastructure bottlenecks for inference, model training, and hybrid application environments. As more organizations integrate AI into their operational core, the need for consistent, policy-driven infrastructure across clouds and edge environments becomes paramount. Mirantis’ offering simplifies AI stack deployment by providing validated templates and automation frameworks compatible with Amazon Web Services, Azure, GCP, OpenStack, and vSphere.

Legacy Workloads Without Lock-in: A Lifeline for Enterprises

Traditionally, organizations have been locked into proprietary virtualization platforms for VM workloads. k0rdent Virtualization offers a direct alternative to VMware products such as vSphere and ESXi, reducing licensing and operational overhead. Importantly, this move enables enterprises to bring their legacy applications alongside modern containerized workloads without rearchitecting, while maintaining operational consistency and compliance. This hybrid flexibility is crucial for industries with mission-critical systems, such as finance, manufacturing, and healthcare.

What This Means for Developers and Platform Engineers

Prior to this release, many internal developer platforms (IDPs) faced fragmentation between cloud-native services and VM-centric legacy stacks. Mirantis k0rdent solves this by delivering composable, declarative automation and GitOps tooling that empowers platform engineering teams to define, deploy, and manage infrastructure through a single interface. This approach streamlines developer experience and accelerates innovation cycles. For DevOps teams, the value lies in automated scaling, role-based access control, and observability for both AI and traditional applications.

Looking Ahead:

With enterprise demand for high-performance, AI-ready infrastructure on the rise, k0rdent is poised to be a foundational layer for hybrid cloud strategies. Expect to see deeper integrations with AI model lifecycle tools, enhanced observability layers, and broader ecosystem collaboration around open virtualization standards. Mirantis’ open-source-first approach may also attract organizations seeking vendor-neutral paths as they modernize aging infrastructure and ramp up AI adoption.

As AI becomes a standard component of enterprise architecture, tools like k0rdent that unify legacy and modern workloads will be critical. Mirantis is betting that the future of AI infrastructure lies in open, flexible, and Kubernetes-native foundations—a bet that aligns with key trends identified by theCUBE Research and other analysts around hybrid infrastructure control, developer productivity, and AI scalability.

Authors

  • Paul Nashawaty

    Paul Nashawaty, Practice Leader and Lead Principal Analyst, specializes in application modernization across build, release and operations. With a wealth of expertise in digital transformation initiatives spanning front-end and back-end systems, he also possesses comprehensive knowledge of the underlying infrastructure ecosystem crucial for supporting modernization endeavors. With over 25 years of experience, Paul has a proven track record in implementing effective go-to-market strategies, including the identification of new market channels, the growth and cultivation of partner ecosystems, and the successful execution of strategic plans resulting in positive business outcomes for his clients.

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  • With over 15 years of hands-on experience in operations roles across legal, financial, and technology sectors, Sam Weston brings deep expertise in the systems that power modern enterprises such as ERP, CRM, HCM, CX, and beyond. Her career has spanned the full spectrum of enterprise applications, from optimizing business processes and managing platforms to leading digital transformation initiatives.

    Sam has transitioned her expertise into the analyst arena, focusing on enterprise applications and the evolving role they play in business productivity and transformation. She provides independent insights that bridge technology capabilities with business outcomes, helping organizations and vendors alike navigate a changing enterprise software landscape.

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