The era of the "benevolent dictator" in platform engineering is coming to an end. The shift toward a more democratic approach in platform development is crucial for success. Jon Skarpeteig will discuss why large-scale adoption is the most critical factor for driving business value and revenue impact. If your platform is hard to access or use, simply hiring better developers won’t solve the problem. "Build it, run it" is a strong foundation, but it’s not enough. In platform engineering, you don’t just build it: you own it. This responsibility extends beyond development to hosting costs, risk assessments, security, and compliance. The key is building guardrails, not roadblocks, to empower internal customers, not simply shepherd them. Attendees will learn strategies for increasing platform adoption and building a truly democratic platform experience.