The main differences between hosting LiveKit on Docker or AWS ECS and using LiveKit Cloud agent deployment (costing $0.01 per minute) really come down to who handles what, how the infrastructure is managed, and the pricing model. 1. Hosting on Docker or AWS ECS (Self-Hosting): - You’re in control of everything — scaling, updates, and keeping an eye on things. - Costs will vary based on your infrastructure use (CPU, memory, data transfer per GB). - You’ll need to set up stateful load balancing, scaling policies, and monitoring yourself. - This option offers great flexibility but does require a good amount of operational know-how. 2. LiveKit Cloud Agent Deployment: - LiveKit takes care of everything with automatic scaling and stateful load balancing. - It’s priced at $0.01 per agent session minute, covering compute and unlimited data transfer. - Comes with built-in observability, including session metrics and logs. - Plus, features like instant rollbacks, warm agents (so no cold starts), and a global infrastructure are included. Summary: - If your team has dedicated DevOps resources and specific compliance needs, self-hosting might be the way to go. - But if you’re looking to simplify operations and focus on speed, reliability, and ease of use for production deployments, LiveKit Cloud is a fantastic choice. I hope this helps clarify things! If you have any more questions or need a hand deciding what’s best for you, I’m here to help. Sources: README.md | LiveKit Pricing | Knowledge Management System | livekit/livekit_composite | DeepWiki | Deploy and scale agents on LiveKit Cloud