The Kong API Summit 2025, covered extensively by theCUBE, offered a glimpse into this "agentic era," where AI agents reason, act, and collaborate through APIs. But what does this actually mean for your business, and is Kong truly positioned to lead the charge?
Kong's AI-Powered Ambitions: A Quick Recap
According to SiliconANGLE's NewsAPI coverage of theCUBE's reporting, Kong is aiming to be the infrastructure backbone for this emerging agent economy. This involves leveraging Kong Konnect, a unified platform designed to manage APIs, microservices, events, and even large language models (LLMs).
Decoding the Agentic Era: More Than Just Hype
The idea of an "agentic era" might sound like futuristic buzz, but it's rooted in a practical need: making AI actionable. Think of AI agents as digital employees, each responsible for specific tasks, explains Paul Nashawaty, principal analyst at theCUBE Research. But these agents can't function in isolation. They need APIs to connect with data sources, trigger actions in other systems, and collaborate with other agents. Kong's strategy, as highlighted in the API Summit 2025 recap, is to provide the plumbing for this interconnected world, facilitating seamless communication and orchestration.
This is where the Model Context Protocol (MCP) comes in. Much like REST revolutionized traditional APIs, MCP is emerging as a foundational protocol for agentic AI, as noted by theCUBE. Kong has introduced first-class support for MCP, including new gateway capabilities in Kong AI Gateway 3.12. This is a significant step, offering standardized MCP server generation from existing REST APIs and automated policy enforcement. The Volcano SDK further empowers developers to build MCP-native agents.
Why Should You Care About MCP?
Consider this: you have a dozen AI agents, each handling a different aspect of customer service. Without a standardized protocol like MCP, managing their interactions, ensuring security, and controlling costs become a nightmare. Kong's MCP support, powered by Kong AI Gateway 3.12, addresses these challenges head-on, offering centralized authentication, secure communication, and scalable agent development.
Beyond Tech: The Business of AI
The convergence of AI and APIs also raises a crucial question: how do you monetize these services? As Peter Marton, co-founder of OpenMeter, pointed out during the summit, precise metering across APIs and events is essential for pricing, enforcement, and proving value. Kong's acquisition of OpenMeter and the subsequent launch of Konnect Metering and Billing reflects this growing need. By treating APIs, models, and streams as billable products with real-time usage tracking, Kong aims to transform APIs and AI services into direct revenue engines.
Is Kong the Only Player in Town?
While Kong is making a strong push into the AI space, it's not operating in a vacuum. Companies like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon are also investing heavily in API management and AI infrastructure. Kong's competitive advantage lies in its open-source roots, its focus on API-centric architecture, and its ability to bridge the gap between traditional APIs and emerging AI technologies. The native integration with AWS API Gateway, as highlighted by SD Times, further expands Kong's reach and appeal.
The Agentic Future: Are You Ready?
The Kong API Summit 2025 paints a compelling picture of the future, where AI agents are integral to business operations. Kong's strategic focus on becoming the infrastructure backbone for this agentic era is a bold move, but it's one that aligns with the growing demand for AI-powered automation and intelligent applications.
So, how will your organization adapt to this agentic era?