DigitalOcean has released Managed Kafka, a simplified and affordable way for startups and small-to-midsize businesses to use Apache Kafka. By managing the operational aspects of running Kafka clusters, customers can focus on product development, reducing time-consuming tasks such as setting up and maintaining clusters. Companies like Datacake and Kairos Sports Tech have found value in Managed Kafka's simplicity and affordability, saving time and resources, and scaling up their existing cluster to production workloads with predictable pricing. DigitalOcean Managed Kafka offers a flat rate price for customers, avoiding underutilization costs and providing cost-effective pricing for both testing and production use cases.