e pod startup times, Istio now includes a <code>startupProbe</code> in sidecar containers by default. This proactive
measure allows for aggressive polling during the initial phase without persisting throughout the pod&rsquo;s lifecycle,
potentially reducing startup times by an average of one second and improving overall resource efficiency.</p><h3 id=openshift-installation-enhancements>OpenShift Installation Enhancements</h3><p>Istio&rsquo;s installation process on OpenShift clusters has been simplified, re