I recently completed a major update to the Istio Fundamentals course on Tetrate Academy. This course was originally launched in 2021 and received a minor revision in 2023. The latest update is the most comprehensive since the course was first released, covering content refresh, version upgrades, technical stack changes, video improvements, and layout enhancements.

This update retains the original structure and pacing of the course while fully modernizing the content to align with the latest developments in the Istio community.

Here are the key highlights:

• Upgraded to Istio 1.24.3: The course has been updated from Istio 1.17.2 to Istio 1.24.3 (February 2025).
• Migrated all resources to stable v1 APIs: Deprecated beta APIs have been removed for a more production-aligned experience.
• Added Ambient Mode module: Covers architecture, data flow, and configuration of Istio’s sidecar-less deployment model.
• Introduced Kubernetes Gateway API: Offers a modern way to expose services in the mesh.
• Re-recorded all videos: Presenter footage has been removed for a more focused and streamlined experience.
• Removed the use of getmesh: Now uses istioctl and Helm exclusively.
• Updated the Real World Example module: Aligns with the latest Istio and Kubernetes versions.
• Added a TIS Overview module: Briefly introduces Tetrate Istio Subscription and its enterprise-grade capabilities.
• Improved quizzes: Outdated questions have been removed, and new ones added to reflect updated content.
• Refined overall layout and pacing: The learning experience is now more structured and easier to follow.

This course remains completely free and is ideal for developers, operators, and architects looking to systematically learn Istio or explore its latest architecture evolutions such as Ambient Mode and the Gateway API.