diff --git a/api/v1alpha1/valkeycluster_types.go b/api/v1alpha1/valkeycluster_types.go
index 8921651..251ddcc 100644
--- a/api/v1alpha1/valkeycluster_types.go
+++ b/api/v1alpha1/valkeycluster_types.go
@@ -82,7 +82,9 @@ type ValkeyClusterSpec struct {
 	// +operator-sdk:csv:customresourcedefinitions:type=spec
 	Password string `json:"password,omitempty"`
 
-	// Number of seconds after the container has started before liveness probes are initiated.
+	// Number of seconds after the container has started before startup probe is initiated.
+	// Deprecated: This field is deprecated and will be removed in a future version.
+	// The startup probe now uses a fixed configuration.
 	// +operator-sdk:csv:customresourcedefinitions:type=spec
 	// +kubebuilder:default=30
 	InitialDelaySeconds int32 `json:"initialDelaySeconds,omitempty"`
diff --git a/config/crd/bases/cache.halter.io_valkeyclusters.yaml b/config/crd/bases/cache.halter.io_valkeyclusters.yaml
index 428d75c..2cf920d 100644
--- a/config/crd/bases/cache.halter.io_valkeyclusters.yaml
+++ b/config/crd/bases/cache.halter.io_valkeyclusters.yaml
@@ -51,8 +51,10 @@ spec:
                 type: string
               initialDelaySeconds:
                 default: 30
-                description: Number of seconds after the container has started before
-                  liveness probes are initiated.
+                description: |-
+                  Number of seconds after the container has started before startup probe is initiated.
+                  Deprecated: This field is deprecated and will be removed in a future version.
+                  The startup probe now uses a fixed configuration.
                 format: int32
                 type: integer
               minReadySeconds:
diff --git a/config/rbac/kustomization.yaml b/config/rbac/kustomization.yaml
index 1dbc0b7..1880dce 100644
--- a/config/rbac/kustomization.yaml
+++ b/config/rbac/kustomization.yaml
@@ -24,3 +24,7 @@ resources:
 # if you do not want those helpers be installed with your Project.
 - valkeycluster_editor_role.yaml
 - valkeycluster_viewer_role.yaml
+# RBAC for Valkey pods to query Kubernetes API for pod discovery
+- valkey_pod_service_account.yaml
+- valkey_pod_role.yaml
+- valkey_pod_role_binding.yaml
diff --git a/config/rbac/valkey_pod_role.yaml b/config/rbac/valkey_pod_role.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3fce5a8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/config/rbac/valkey_pod_role.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: Role
+metadata:
+  name: valkey-pod-reader
+  namespace: system
+rules:
+- apiGroups: [""]
+  resources: ["pods"]
+  verbs: ["get", "list"]
diff --git a/config/rbac/valkey_pod_role_binding.yaml b/config/rbac/valkey_pod_role_binding.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..33127a7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/config/rbac/valkey_pod_role_binding.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+apiVersion: rbac.authorization.k8s.io/v1
+kind: RoleBinding
+metadata:
+  name: valkey-pod-reader-binding
+  namespace: system
+roleRef:
+  apiGroup: rbac.authorization.k8s.io
+  kind: Role
+  name: valkey-pod-reader
+subjects:
+- kind: ServiceAccount
+  name: valkey-pod
+  namespace: system
diff --git a/config/rbac/valkey_pod_service_account.yaml b/config/rbac/valkey_pod_service_account.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fc865aa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/config/rbac/valkey_pod_service_account.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+apiVersion: v1
+kind: ServiceAccount
+metadata:
+  name: valkey-pod
+  namespace: system
diff --git a/internal/controller/scripts/meet.sh b/internal/controller/scripts/meet.sh
index 80a5312..1a6e87f 100644
--- a/internal/controller/scripts/meet.sh
+++ b/internal/controller/scripts/meet.sh
@@ -9,19 +9,49 @@ end_time=$((start_time + SCRIPT_TIMEOUT))
 
 msg meet begin
 
+# Function to get pod IP from Kubernetes API
+get_pod_ip() {
+	local pod_name=$1
+	local namespace=$(cat /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/namespace)
+	local token=$(cat /var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/token)
+	local cacert=/var/run/secrets/kubernetes.io/serviceaccount/ca.crt
+
+	# Query Kubernetes API for the specific pod
+	curl -s --cacert "$cacert" --header "Authorization: Bearer $token" \
+		"https://kubernetes.default.svc/api/v1/namespaces/$namespace/pods/$pod_name" |
+		grep -o '"podIP":"[^"]*"' | head -1 | cut -d'"' -f4
+}
+
 while [ "$(date +%s)" -lt "$end_time" ]; do
 	sleep 1
-	msg meet "valkey_cli $VALKEY_HOST 6379 -t 1 -c ping"
-	RESPONSE=$(valkey_cli "$VALKEY_HOST" 6379 -t 1 -c ping)
 
-	if [ "$RESPONSE" = "PONG" ]; then
-		msg meet "PONG response from $VALKEY_HOST"
+	# Extract pod name from FQDN (take everything before first dot)
+	POD_NAME=$(echo "$VALKEY_HOST" | cut -d'.' -f1)
+
+	# Try to get IP from Kubernetes API first
+	ipaddress=$(get_pod_ip "$POD_NAME")
+
+	# Fall back to DNS if Kubernetes API fails
+	if [ -z "$ipaddress" ]; then
+		msg meet "Kubernetes API lookup failed, falling back to DNS for $VALKEY_HOST"
 		ipaddress=$(getent hosts "$VALKEY_HOST" | awk '{ print $1 }')
+	fi
+
+	if [ -z "$ipaddress" ]; then
+		msg meet "Could not resolve $VALKEY_HOST"
+		continue
+	fi
+
+	msg meet "valkey_cli $ipaddress 6379 -t 1 -c ping"
+	RESPONSE=$(valkey_cli "$ipaddress" 6379 -t 1 -c ping)
+
+	if [ "$RESPONSE" = "PONG" ]; then
+		msg meet "PONG response from $ipaddress ($VALKEY_HOST)"
 		msg meet "MEET $ipaddress"
 		valkey_cli 127.0.0.1 6379 -t 1 -c cluster meet "$ipaddress" 6379
 		break
 	else
-		msg meet "got response from $VALKEY_HOST: ${RESPONSE}"
+		msg meet "got response from $ipaddress: ${RESPONSE}"
 		continue
 	fi
 done
diff --git a/internal/controller/scripts/startup.sh b/internal/controller/scripts/startup.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e3b8064
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/controller/scripts/startup.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,124 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# Valkey Node Startup Check for Kubernetes
+# Returns 0 (started) if any of these conditions are met:
+# 1. Cluster state is "ok"
+# 2. Node has zero slots allocated
+# 3. Node doesn't know about any other nodes (single node)
+# 4. 300 seconds have elapsed since pod started
+
+set -x
+
+# shellcheck source=./utils.sh
+. /scripts/utils.sh
+
+# Configuration
+TIMEOUT_SECONDS="${TIMEOUT_SECONDS:-300}"
+
+# Function to check if timeout has elapsed since Valkey started
+check_timeout() {
+	local info_output
+	info_output=$(valkey_cli 127.0.0.1 6379 -t 1 -c INFO server 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+	# Extract uptime_in_seconds from INFO output
+	local uptime
+	uptime=$(echo "$info_output" | grep "^uptime_in_seconds:" | cut -d: -f2 | tr -d '\r')
+
+	if [ -z "$uptime" ]; then
+		echo "Warning: Could not retrieve Valkey uptime" >&2
+		return 1
+	fi
+
+	if [ "$uptime" -ge $TIMEOUT_SECONDS ]; then
+		echo "Startup check passed: Valkey uptime of ${uptime}s exceeds timeout of ${TIMEOUT_SECONDS}s"
+		return 0
+	fi
+	return 1
+}
+
+# Function to check cluster state
+check_cluster_state() {
+	local cluster_info
+	cluster_info=$(valkey_cli 127.0.0.1 6379 -t 1 -c CLUSTER INFO 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+	if echo "$cluster_info" | grep -q "cluster_state:ok"; then
+		echo "Startup check passed: cluster state is ok"
+		return 0
+	fi
+	return 1
+}
+
+# Function to check slot allocation
+check_slots() {
+	local nodes_info
+	nodes_info=$(valkey_cli 127.0.0.1 6379 -t 1 -c CLUSTER NODES 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+	# Find the current node (marked with "myself")
+	local myself_line
+	myself_line=$(echo "$nodes_info" | grep "myself" || echo "")
+
+	if [ -z "$myself_line" ]; then
+		echo "Warning: Could not find current node in cluster nodes output" >&2
+		return 1
+	fi
+
+	# Check if the line contains any slot ranges (format: [slot-slot] or single slots)
+	# Slots appear after the address and flags, typically after the 8th field
+	if ! echo "$myself_line" | grep -qE '\[?[0-9]+-?[0-9]*\]?'; then
+		echo "Startup check passed: node has zero slots allocated"
+		return 0
+	fi
+
+	return 1
+}
+
+# Function to check if node doesn't know about any other nodes
+check_single_node() {
+	local nodes_info
+	nodes_info=$(valkey_cli 127.0.0.1 6379 -t 1 -c CLUSTER NODES 2>/dev/null || echo "")
+
+	if [ -z "$nodes_info" ]; then
+		echo "Warning: Could not retrieve cluster nodes information" >&2
+		return 1
+	fi
+
+	# Count the number of nodes (each node is one line)
+	local node_count
+	node_count=$(echo "$nodes_info" | grep -c "^")
+
+	if [ "$node_count" -eq 1 ]; then
+		echo "Startup check passed: node doesn't know about any other nodes"
+		return 0
+	fi
+
+	return 1
+}
+
+# Main startup check logic
+main() {
+	# Check condition 4: timeout elapsed
+	if check_timeout; then
+		exit 0
+	fi
+
+	# Check condition 1: cluster state ok
+	if check_cluster_state; then
+		exit 0
+	fi
+
+	# Check condition 3: single node (doesn't know about other nodes)
+	if check_single_node; then
+		exit 0
+	fi
+
+	# Check condition 2: zero slots allocated
+	if check_slots; then
+		exit 0
+	fi
+
+	# None of the conditions met
+	echo "Startup check failed: waiting for cluster state ok, zero slots, single node, or timeout"
+	exit 1
+}
+
+main
diff --git a/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_configmap.go b/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_configmap.go
index 0631518..1a43f3e 100644
--- a/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_configmap.go
+++ b/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_configmap.go
@@ -40,12 +40,18 @@ func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) upsertConfigMap(ctx context.Context, valkeyClu
 		logger.Error(err, "failed to read utils.sh")
 		return "", err
 	}
+	startup, err := scripts.ReadFile("scripts/startup.sh")
+	if err != nil {
+		logger.Error(err, "failed to read startup.sh")
+		return "", err
+	}
 	ls := labelsForValkeyCluster(valkeyCluster.Name)
 	cmData := map[string]string{
 		"pre_stop.sh":   string(preStop),
 		"post_start.sh": string(postStart),
 		"meet.sh":       string(meet),
 		"utils.sh":      string(utils),
+		"startup.sh":    string(startup),
 	}
 	valkeyConfContent, err := getValkeyConfigContent(valkeyCluster)
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_statefulset.go b/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_statefulset.go
index 4bd4589..f5910a3 100644
--- a/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_statefulset.go
+++ b/internal/controller/valkeycluster_controller_statefulset.go
@@ -104,8 +104,9 @@ func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) statefulSet(name string, size int32, valkeyClu
 					},
 				},
 				Spec: corev1.PodSpec{
-					NodeSelector: valkeyCluster.Spec.NodeSelector,
-					Tolerations:  valkeyCluster.Spec.Tolerations,
+					ServiceAccountName: "valkey-cluster-operator-valkey-pod",
+					NodeSelector:       valkeyCluster.Spec.NodeSelector,
+					Tolerations:        valkeyCluster.Spec.Tolerations,
 					SecurityContext: &corev1.PodSecurityContext{
 						RunAsNonRoot: &[]bool{true}[0],
 						// IMPORTANT: seccomProfile was introduced with Kubernetes 1.19
@@ -167,13 +168,23 @@ func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) statefulSet(name string, size int32, valkeyClu
 									},
 								},
 							},
+							StartupProbe: &corev1.Probe{
+								ProbeHandler: corev1.ProbeHandler{
+									Exec: &corev1.ExecAction{
+										Command: []string{"/bin/bash", "/scripts/startup.sh"},
+									},
+								},
+								TimeoutSeconds:   5,
+								PeriodSeconds:    10,
+								SuccessThreshold: 1,
+								FailureThreshold: 30,
+							},
 							ReadinessProbe: &corev1.Probe{
 								ProbeHandler: corev1.ProbeHandler{
 									TCPSocket: &corev1.TCPSocketAction{
 										Port: intstr.FromInt(VALKEY_PORT),
 									},
 								},
-								InitialDelaySeconds: valkeyCluster.Spec.InitialDelaySeconds,
 							},
 							LivenessProbe: &corev1.Probe{
 								ProbeHandler: corev1.ProbeHandler{
@@ -504,7 +515,7 @@ func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) reconcileStatefulSets(ctx context.Context, req
 // - valkey-server command
 // - valkey-server lifecycle
 // - valkey-server environment
-// - valkey-server readiness probe
+// - valkey-server startup probe
 // - metrics command
 // It's really important that you consider updating applyDesiredStatefulSetSpec if this function changes
 func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) compareActualToDesiredStatefulSet(ctx context.Context, valkeyCluster *cachev1alpha1.ValkeyCluster, stsName string) (bool, error) {
@@ -533,8 +544,8 @@ func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) compareActualToDesiredStatefulSet(ctx context.
 		log.Info(fmt.Sprintf("StatefulSet %s Env is different: %s", stsName, cmp.Diff(actual.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Env, desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Env)))
 		diff = true
 	}
-	if !cmp.Equal(actual.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].ReadinessProbe.InitialDelaySeconds, desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].ReadinessProbe.InitialDelaySeconds) {
-		log.Info(fmt.Sprintf("StatefulSet %s ReadinessProbe.InitialDelaySeconds is different: %s", stsName, cmp.Diff(actual.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].ReadinessProbe.InitialDelaySeconds, desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].ReadinessProbe.InitialDelaySeconds)))
+	if !cmp.Equal(actual.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].StartupProbe, desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].StartupProbe) {
+		log.Info(fmt.Sprintf("StatefulSet %s StartupProbe is different: %s", stsName, cmp.Diff(actual.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].StartupProbe, desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].StartupProbe)))
 		diff = true
 	}
 
@@ -555,7 +566,7 @@ func (r *ValkeyClusterReconciler) applyDesiredStatefulSetSpec(valkeyCluster *cac
 		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Lifecycle = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Lifecycle
 		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Env = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Env
 		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Image = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].Image
-		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].ReadinessProbe = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].ReadinessProbe
+		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].StartupProbe = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[0].StartupProbe
 
 		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[1].Args = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[1].Args
 		ss.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[1].Image = desired.Spec.Template.Spec.Containers[1].Image
diff --git a/test/e2e/e2e_test.go b/test/e2e/e2e_test.go
index 2d75a04..46730c4 100644
--- a/test/e2e/e2e_test.go
+++ b/test/e2e/e2e_test.go
@@ -229,7 +229,7 @@ var _ = Describe("controller", Ordered, func() {
 				}
 				return nil
 			}
-			Eventually(getPvc, time.Minute, time.Second).Should(Succeed())
+			Eventually(getPvc, 5*time.Minute, time.Second).Should(Succeed())
 		})
 		It("should add replicas", func() {
 			cmd := exec.Command("kubectl",