When NOT to use Apache Kafka?

Apache Kafka is the de facto standard for event streaming to process data in motion. With its significant adoption growth across all industries, I get a very valid question every week: When NOT to use Apache Kafka? What limitations does the event streaming platform have? When does Kafka simply not provide the needed capabilities? How to qualify Kafka out as it is not the right tool for the job? This blog post explores the DOs and DONTs. Separate sections explain when to use Kafka, when NOT to use Kafka, and when to MAYBE use Kafka.