In short, an orchestrator (like Kubernetes) brings together a set of microservices and organizes them into an application that brings value. It also provides and manages cloud-native features such as scaling, self-healing, and updating.
OS of the cloud
“Abstracting and commoditizing infrastructure” is a fancy way of saying that Kubernetes makes it so you don’t have to worry which cloud or servers your applications are running on. In fact, this is at the heart of the idea that Kubernetes is the operating system (OS) of the cloud. So, in the same way, Linux and Windows mean you do not have to care if your applications are running on Dell, Cisco, HPE, or Nigel Poulton servers. Using Kubernetes means that you do not have to care if your applications are running on AWS or Nigel Poulton’s cloud.
Abstracting clouds meant that Kubernetes presented an opportunity for the technology industry to wipe out the value of AWS. You can just write your applications to run on Kubernetes, and it will make no difference whose cloud is underneath. Thanks to Kubernetes, the playing field has been leveled.
This is why every vendor is in love with Kubernetes and places it front-and-center in their offerings. This ensures that Kubernetes has a strong, bright, and long future which in turn gives the user community a safe and vendor-neutral horse to bet their cloud future on.