LLMs at Scale: Infrastructure That Keeps AI Safe, Smart & Affordable // Marco Palladino// # 341

LLMs at Scale: Infrastructure That Keeps AI Safe, Smart & Affordable // Marco Palladino// # 341

Author: Demetrios October 7, 2025 Duration: 51:13

LLMs at Scale: Infrastructure That Keeps AI Safe, Smart & Affordable // MLOps Podcast #341 with Marco Palladino, Kong's Co-Founder and CTO.


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// Abstract

While conversations around AI regulations continue to evolve, the responsibility for AI continues to be with developers. In this episode, Marco Palladino, CTO and co-founder of Kong Inc., explores what it means to build and scale AI responsibly when the rulebook is still being written. He explains that infrastructure should be the frontline defense for enforcing governance, security, and reliability in AI deployments. Marco shares how Kong’s technologies, including AI Gateway and AI Manager, help organizations rein in shadow AI, reduce LLM hallucinations, improve observability, and act as the foundation for agentic workflows.


// Bio

Marco Palladino is an inventor, software developer, and internet entrepreneur. As the CTO and co-founder of Kong, he is Kong’s co-author, responsible for the design and delivery of the company’s products, while also providing technical thought leadership around APIs and microservices within both Kong and the external software community. Prior to Kong, Marco co-founded Mashape in 2010, which became the largest API marketplace and was acquired by RapidAPI in 2017.


// Related Links

Website: https://konghq.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odpPVeQZjHU https://www.thestack.technology/the-big-interview-kong-cto-marco-palladino/


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Connect with Marco on LinkedIn: /marcopalladino/


Timestamps:

[00:00] Agent-mediated interactions shift

[01:17] Kong connectivity and agents

[04:36] Transcript cleanup request

[08:11] MCP server use cases

[12:37] Agent world possibilities

[15:55] Business communication evolution

[18:55] System optimization

[25:36] AI gateway patterns

[31:30] Investment decision making

[35:54] Building conviction process

[41:34] Polished customer conversation

[46:37] AI gateway R&D future

[50:52] Wrap up


Hosted by Demetrios, MLOps.community is a space for honest, meandering talks about the real work of making artificial intelligence systems actually work. This isn't about hype or theoretical papers; it's about the messy, practical, and often surprising journey of taking models from a notebook into a live environment. You'll hear from engineers and practitioners who are in the trenches, discussing the tools, the frustrations, and the occasional breakthroughs that define the day-to-day. The conversations are deliberately relaxed, covering everything from traditional machine learning pipelines to the new world of large language models and even the intangible "vibes" of team culture and process. Each episode peels back a layer on what "production" really means, whether that involves deploying a predictive service, managing an agentic system, or maintaining reliability as everything scales. Tuning into this podcast feels like grabbing a coffee with colleagues who aren't afraid to dig into the technical nitty-gritty while keeping the tone conversational and accessible. It's for anyone who builds, manages, or is just curious about the operational backbone that allows AI to deliver value, offering a grounded perspective often missing from the broader conversation.
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