One Kernel, Zero Sidecars: Tracing AI Workloads Without an Agent on Every Host

May 18, 2026 · 1:00 PM UTC ·7 min read · 0 reactions · 0 comments · 33 views

TL;DR · WeSearch summary

The article discusses the challenges of using traditional observability agents for AI workloads, particularly in large fleets. It highlights the overhead costs associated with running an agent on every host and introduces kernel-level tracing as a more efficient alternative. The use of eBPF for tracing GPU workloads is presented as a solution that minimizes resource consumption while providing necessary observability data.

Key facts

▪OpenAI uses Datadog for tracing inside its Codex agent, which requires an agent on every host.
▪Kernel-level tracing with eBPF can provide necessary data without the overhead of multiple agents.
▪At scale, the resource costs of running observability agents can become significant, impacting overall performance.

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Original publisher	DEV.to (Top)
Canonical URL	https://dev.to/ingero/one-kernel-zero-sidecars-tracing-ai-workloads-without-an-agent-on-every-host-50bl
Publication time	Mon, 18 May 2026 13:00:00 +0000
Retrieval time	2026-05-18T13:04:56.494Z
Last seen	2026-05-18T13:04:56.494Z
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Indexing	May the item be indexed (stored, ranked, made findable)?	Allowed
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Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand

try { if(localStorage) { let currentUser = localStorage.getItem('current_user'); if (currentUser) { currentUser = JSON.parse(currentUser); if (currentUser.id === 3853036) { document.getElementById('article-show-container').classList.add('current-user-is-article-author'); } } } } catch (e) { console.error(e); } Ingero Team Posted on May 18 • Originally published at ingero.io One Kernel, Zero Sidecars: Tracing AI Workloads Without an Agent on Every Host #linux #devops #observability #monitoring Per-host overhead multiplied across N hosts, vs. one kernel-level instrumentation per host. The math at fleet scale is harder to argue with than the marketing one. TL;DR Wolfe Research disclosed this week that OpenAI uses Datadog for tracing inside its Codex agent.

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