Why the operating system is no longer just plumbing: Raj Das on the future of RHEL

Organizations often take the operating system for granted and think of it as a static, “invisible” layer doing its job in the background. Raj Das, the Senior Director of Core RHEL Product Management at Red Hat, thinks this concept has long since expired. Speaking with Dataquest, he discusses how RHEL 10 will help shape the future for AI, hybrid cloud, and edge computing, walking the tightrope between trust and innovation, automation and compliance, and enterprise-grade stability and agility.

RHEL has been called the “invisible backbone” of enterprise IT. As AI, cloud-native, and edge workloads diversify, what’s the biggest misconception enterprises still have about the role of the OS layer today?

The biggest misconception I encounter is that the operating system is just plumbing—something you set up once and forget about. Many enterprises still think of the operating system as a “static” or background layer that doesn’t need active evolution. The reality is that modern operating systems like Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) are dynamic, intelligent platforms that actively enable and optimize everything running on top of them. Whether you're training AI models, deploying cloud-native applications, or managing edge devices, the OS is making thousands of critical decisions every second about resource allocation, security enforcement, and performance optimization.

With Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), we’ve continuously evolved the platform to be more than an invisible backbone; it is a strategic enabler that ensures consistency, compliance, and performance across environments. As enterprises expand into AI, edge, and hybrid cloud, RHEL provides the trusted foundation to scale innovation without compromising on security or reliability. It is engineered to empower enterprise IT and developers to not just manage the present, but to architect the future

Many CIOs are debating whether to standardize on fewer consolidated platforms or adopt best-of-breed stacks for AI and cloud. Where does RHEL fit into that debate?

We believe CIOs don’t need to choose between consolidation and innovation. Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) offers both.  RHEL is designed to give CIOs the consistency of a unified platform while still supporting best-of-breed technologies. For example, RHEL integrates seamlessly with Red Hat OpenShift AI and the Red Hat AI portfolio, enabling enterprises to run AI workloads across on-prem, public cloud, and edge with the same level of trust and governance. This flexibility helps organizations standardize where it matters—security, compliance, operational dev ops—while still adopting new stacks and accelerators for differentiated innovation.

AI training and inference often run on GPUs and specialized accelerators. How is RHEL evolving to ensure enterprises can integrate these heterogeneous hardware environments without lock-in?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) has always been hardware-agnostic by design. With RHEL 10, we’ve strengthened that with features like image mode and broader ecosystem validation — so workloads can run confidently across CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs, and emerging accelerators.  RHEL 10 also helps you bridge Linux skills gaps, improve build-time decisions, reduce drift, and defend against emerging threats from quantum computing. More than just an iteration, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 provides a strategic and intelligent backbone for enterprise IT to navigate increasing complexity, accelerate innovation and build a more secure computing foundation for the future.

Through our partner validation program, we work closely with hardware and software vendors to ensure interoperability. We’ve also added new integrations, such as PostgreSQL vector database support and confidential computing, to optimize AI use cases. The result: enterprises can adopt the latest hardware innovations without being locked into one vendor.

Enterprises often say patching and compliance slow down innovation. Can you share how Red Hat is using automation and zero-downtime patching in RHEL to remove this trade-off?

Traditional patching has been a monthly headache—schedule downtime, cross your fingers, hope nothing breaks. We're changing this completely with Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) 10.  In RHEL 10, we’re moving towards a “repave, not patch” methodology — rebuilding secure images and redeploying them, rather than layering patches in place. Think of it like getting a new phone that's already set up exactly how you want it, rather than updating your old phone and dealing with glitches. Combined with Red Hat Insights automation, compliance becomes continuous and invisible. Your developers keep coding, your applications keep running, and your auditors stay happy—all without scheduled maintenance windows disrupting business operations via the kernel live patching capability in RHEL.

Edge computing use cases—from autonomous vehicles to 5G towers—demand reliability in hostile, resource-constrained environments. What hard engineering choices is RHEL making to meet those demands?

At the edge, you can't send someone to fix things when they break. Everything must work perfectly with minimal resources and no human intervention. This reality drives every engineering decision we make.

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) for edge is built around three principles: minimal footprint, bulletproof reliability, and complete automation.

With image mode deployments, zero-downtime updates, and optimized container support, RHEL ensures that even resource-constrained environments can maintain enterprise-grade reliability. We’ve also focused heavily on security—confidential computing, quantum-resistant cryptography, and compliance automation—because edge environments are often exposed to greater risk. These choices allow RHEL to deliver resilience in conditions where compute power, space, and connectivity are limited.

Open source projects often fragment as they scale. What guardrails does Red Hat put in place to ensure upstream innovation translates into a consistent, enterprise-grade experience with RHEL?

Open source innovation happens at startup speed, but enterprises need enterprise stability. As enterprise IT grapples with the proliferation of hybrid environments and the imperative to integrate AI workloads, the need for an intelligent, resilient and durable operating system has never been greater. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 rises to this challenge, delivering a platform engineered for agility, flexibility and manageability, all while retaining a strong security posture against the software threats of the future.

We don't just take community code and ship it — we validate, harden, and test everything extensively. Red Hat bridges this gap by being an active contributor upstream while serving as an enterprise-grade curator downstream. Our ecosystem partnerships ensure that when new technologies emerge, they work reliably with RHEL from day one. The new RHEL extensions repository lets us deliver cutting-edge capabilities faster while keeping the core platform rock-solid.

Essentially, we absorb the complexity and risk of open source innovation so enterprises get the benefits without the headaches. Your teams can leverage the latest open source advances with enterprise-grade confidence.

 You’ve worked at both startups and giants like NetApp and Seagate. If you compare product strategy in those worlds, what’s a lesson you’re applying at Red Hat to keep RHEL relevant in fast-changing markets?

At startups, you learn agility—how to move fast and adapt quickly. At large enterprises, you learn the discipline of scale and governance. At Red Hat, we bring these two together. With Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), we’re evolving the platform to address cutting-edge needs like AI and quantum-era security, while ensuring the long-term stability enterprises expect. A key lesson I’ve carried forward is: always design for the future, but never break the trust customers place in you. That balance keeps RHEL relevant in markets that change faster every year.

Do you see the OS becoming more of a “silent enabler” of innovation—or regaining visibility as enterprises demand transparency and sovereignty over their platforms?

I believe the OS will continue to be both: a silent enabler and a visible differentiator. On one hand, the best OS is one that enterprises can rely on without thinking about it—it just works. On the other hand, in an era where data sovereignty, compliance, and AI governance are top priorities, the OS must also provide transparency, visibility, and control. With RHEL 10, we’re ensuring the platform is invisible when it needs to be, and highly visible when it matters—helping organizations innovate confidently while retaining sovereignty over their infrastructure.