diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 628a63a59..b0acad9d9 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ env:
   GOPROXY: "direct"
 
 jobs:
+
   proxy-sanity-check:
     name: Proxy Sanity Check
     runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
@@ -471,6 +472,7 @@ jobs:
       - name: Push benchmark result
         if:  ${{ success() && github.ref_name == 'main'}}
         run: git push 'https://github-actions:${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}@github.com/nginx/agent.git' benchmark-results:benchmark-results
+
   load-tests:
     name: Load Tests
     if: ${{ !github.event.pull_request.head.repo.fork && !startsWith(github.head_ref, 'dependabot-') }}
@@ -504,7 +506,7 @@ jobs:
           GO_VERSION: ${{ env.GO_VERSION }}
         with:
           file: test/docker/load/Dockerfile
-          tags: nginx-agent-load-test:1.0.0
+          tags: agent_ubuntu_24.04_load_test:1.0.0
           context: '.'
           push: false
           load: true
@@ -518,15 +520,13 @@ jobs:
 
       - name: Run Load Tests
         run: |
-          results=$(docker run --rm nginx-agent-load-test:1.0.0)
-          echo "$results" > benchmarks.json
-          echo "$results"
+          make run-load-test-image
 
       - name: Upload Load Test Results
         uses: actions/upload-artifact@ea165f8d65b6e75b540449e92b4886f43607fa02 # v4.6.2
         with:
           name: load-test-results
-          path: benchmarks.json
+          path: build/test/load/benchmarks.json
           if-no-files-found: error
 
       - name: Store benchmark result
@@ -534,7 +534,7 @@ jobs:
         with:
           name: Compare Benchmark Results
           tool: 'customSmallerIsBetter'
-          output-file-path: benchmarks.json
+          output-file-path: build/test/load/benchmarks.json
           benchmark-data-dir-path: ""
           # Set auto-push to false since GitHub API token is not given
           auto-push: false
@@ -545,3 +545,105 @@ jobs:
       - name: Push load test result
         if:  ${{ success() && github.ref_name == 'main' }}
         run: git push 'https://github-actions:${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}@github.com/nginx/agent.git' benchmark-results:benchmark-results
+
+  generate-cpu-profile:
+    name: Generate CPU Profile
+    runs-on: ubuntu-22.04
+    needs: build-unsigned-snapshot
+    if: ${{ github.event_name == 'push' &&
+            startsWith(github.ref_name, 'release-') && 
+            !github.event.pull_request.head.repo.fork }}
+    permissions:
+      contents: write
+      pull-requests: write
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout
+        uses: actions/checkout@b4ffde65f46336ab88eb53be808477a3936bae11 # v4.1.1
+        with:
+          fetch-tags: 'true'
+
+      - name: Setup Go
+        uses: actions/setup-go@d35c59abb061a4a6fb18e82ac0862c26744d6ab5 # v5.5.0
+        with:
+          go-version-file: 'go.mod'
+          cache: false
+
+      - name: Set env
+        run: |
+          echo "GO_VERSION=$(cat go.mod | grep toolchain | sed 's/toolchain //; s/go//')" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+
+      - name: Download Packages
+        uses: actions/download-artifact@eaceaf801fd36c7dee90939fad912460b18a1ffe # v4.1.2
+        with:
+          name: nginx-agent-unsigned-snapshots
+          path: build
+
+      - name: Build Load Test Image
+        uses: docker/build-push-action@2cdde995de11925a030ce8070c3d77a52ffcf1c0 # v5.3.0
+        env:
+          GO_VERSION: ${{ env.GO_VERSION }}
+        with:
+          file: test/docker/load/Dockerfile
+          tags: agent_ubuntu_24.04_load_test:1.0.0
+          context: '.'
+          push: false
+          load: true
+          no-cache: true
+          secrets: |
+            "nginx-crt=${{ secrets.NGINX_CRT }}"
+            "nginx-key=${{ secrets.NGINX_KEY }}"
+          build-args: |
+            OSARCH=amd64
+            GO_VERSION=${{ env.GO_VERSION }}
+
+      - name: Run CPU Profiling Tests
+        run: |
+          cp default.pgo old_profile.pgo > /dev/null || echo "No previous pgo profile found"
+          make generate-pgo-profile
+          ls -l default.pgo
+          diff default.pgo old_profile.pgo || echo "Profiles differ"
+
+      - name: Upload CPU Profile
+        run: |
+          git config --global user.name 'github-actions'
+          git config --global user.email '41898282+github-actions[bot]@users.noreply.github.com'
+          git remote set-url origin 'https://github-actions:${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}@github.com/nginx/agent.git'
+          git checkout -b ${{ github.ref_name }}-update-profile
+          git add default.pgo
+          git commit -m "Update pgo profile -- CI Autogenerated" || echo "No changes to commit"
+          git log -1
+          git push -u origin "${{ github.ref_name }}-update-profile"
+
+      - name: Create Pull Request
+        uses: actions/github-script@60a0d83039c74a4aee543508d2ffcb1c3799cdea # v7.0.1
+        with:
+          script: |
+            const { repo, owner } = context.repo;
+            // Check if a PR already exists
+            const { data: pullRequests } = await github.rest.pulls.list({
+              title: 'Update pgo profile',
+              owner,
+              repo,
+              head: '${{ github.ref_name }}-update-profile',
+              base: '${{ github.ref_name }}',
+              state: 'open'
+            });
+            if (pullRequests.length > 0) {
+              console.log('A pull request already exists:', pullRequests[0].html_url);
+              return;
+            }
+            
+            console.log('Creating a new pull request to update the pgo profile...');
+            console.log('If the PR creation fails, please ensure that the workflow has write permissions and try again.');
+            console.log('Base: ${{ github.ref_name }}, Head: ${{ github.ref_name }}-update-profile');
+            
+            const result = await github.rest.pulls.create({
+              title: 'Update pgo profile',
+              owner,
+              repo,
+              head: '${{ github.ref_name }}-update-profile',
+              base: '${{ github.ref_name }}',
+              body: [
+                'This PR is auto-generated by the release workflow.'
+              ].join('\n')
+            });
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 276c94e2d..e601c0ef3 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -288,26 +288,68 @@ local-rpm-package: ## Create local rpm package
 	@CGO_ENABLED=0 GOARCH=$(OSARCH) GOOS=linux $(GOBUILD) -o $(BUILD_DIR)/$(BINARY_NAME) -pgo=default.pgo -ldflags=$(LDFLAGS) $(PROJECT_DIR)/$(PROJECT_FILE)
 	ARCH=$(OSARCH) VERSION=$(shell echo $(VERSION) | tr -d 'v') $(GORUN) $(NFPM) pkg --config ./scripts/packages/.local-nfpm.yaml --packager rpm --target $(RPM_PACKAGE);
 
-generate-pgo-profile: build-mock-management-plane-grpc
-	mv default.pgo profile.pprof
+generate-pgo-profile: build-mock-management-plane-grpc run-load-test-with-cpu-profiling ## Generate PGO profile
+	@echo "Generating PGO profile"
 	TEST_ENV="Container" CONTAINER_OS_TYPE=$(CONTAINER_OS_TYPE) BUILD_TARGET="install-agent-local" \
 	PACKAGES_REPO=$(OSS_PACKAGES_REPO) PACKAGE_NAME=$(PACKAGE_NAME) BASE_IMAGE=$(BASE_IMAGE) \
 	OS_VERSION=$(OS_VERSION) OS_RELEASE=$(OS_RELEASE) DOCKERFILE_PATH=$(DOCKERFILE_PATH) \
 	IMAGE_PATH=$(IMAGE_PATH) TAG=${IMAGE_TAG} CONTAINER_NGINX_IMAGE_REGISTRY=${CONTAINER_NGINX_IMAGE_REGISTRY} \
-	$(GOTEST) -v ./test/integration -cpuprofile integration_cpu.pprof
-	@CGO_ENABLED=0 $(GOTEST) -count 10 -timeout 5m -bench=. -benchmem -run=^# ./internal/watcher/instance -cpuprofile perf_watcher_cpu.pprof
-	@$(GOTOOL) pprof -proto perf_watcher_cpu.pprof integration_cpu.pprof > default.pgo
-	rm perf_watcher_cpu.pprof integration_cpu.pprof integration.test profile.pprof
+	scripts/performance/profiling.sh
+
+	@$(GOTOOL) pprof -proto -output=default.pgo \
+		build/test/profiles/merged.pprof \
+		build/test/load-cpu-profiling/load/metrics_load_cpu.pprof \
+		|| { echo "Failed to merge profiles"; exit 1; }
 
 # run under sudo locally
 load-test-image: ## Build performance load testing image
-	@echo "🚚 Running load tests"
-	$(CONTAINER_BUILDENV) $(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) build -t $(IMAGE_TAG)_load_test . \
-		--no-cache -f ./test/docker/load/Dockerfile \
+	@echo "🚚  Building load test image"
+	$(CONTAINER_BUILDENV) $(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) build \
+		--no-cache \
+		-t $(IMAGE_TAG)_load_test:1.0.0 . \
+		-f ./test/docker/load/Dockerfile \
 		--secret id=nginx-crt,src=$(CERTS_DIR)/nginx-repo.crt \
 		--secret id=nginx-key,src=$(CERTS_DIR)/nginx-repo.key \
 		--build-arg OSARCH=$(OSARCH) \
 		--build-arg GO_VERSION=$(GO_VERSION)
 
 run-load-test-image: ## Run performance load testing image
-	$(CONTAINER_BUILDENV) $(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) run --rm -v $(PWD)/$(BUILD_DIR)/:/agent/$(BUILD_DIR)/ $(IMAGE_TAG)_load_test
+	@mkdir -p $(TEST_BUILD_DIR)/load
+	@echo "🚚  Running load tests"
+	$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) rm -f agent-load-test || true
+
+# Run the load test container
+	@$(CONTAINER_BUILDENV) $(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) run \
+		--name agent-load-test \
+		$(IMAGE_TAG)_load_test:1.0.0
+
+# Copy the files generated by the load tests
+	@$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) cp \
+		agent-load-test:/agent/performance/load \
+		$(TEST_BUILD_DIR)
+	@echo "Results saved to $(TEST_BUILD_DIR)/load"
+	@find $(TEST_BUILD_DIR)/load -type f -exec ls -lh {} \;
+
+# Stop and remove the container
+	@$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) stop agent-load-test && $(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) rm -f agent-load-test
+
+run-load-test-with-cpu-profiling: ## Run performance load testing with cpu profiling
+	@echo "🚚  Running load tests with cpu profiling"
+	@mkdir -p $(TEST_BUILD_DIR)/load-cpu-profiling
+	@$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) rm -f agent-load-test-with-cpu-profiling || true
+
+# Run the load test container
+	@$(CONTAINER_BUILDENV) $(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) run \
+		--name agent-load-test-with-cpu-profiling \
+		--env PROFILE=true \
+		$(IMAGE_TAG)_load_test:1.0.0
+
+# Copy the files generated by the load tests
+	@$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) cp \
+		agent-load-test-with-cpu-profiling:/agent/performance/load \
+		$(TEST_BUILD_DIR)/load-cpu-profiling
+	@echo "Results saved to $(TEST_BUILD_DIR)/load-cpu-profiling"
+
+# Stop and remove the container
+	@$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) stop agent-load-test-with-cpu-profiling && \
+		$(CONTAINER_CLITOOL) rm -f agent-load-test-with-cpu-profiling
diff --git a/Makefile.containers b/Makefile.containers
index 15c7019f0..d902b5b70 100644
--- a/Makefile.containers
+++ b/Makefile.containers
@@ -52,6 +52,6 @@ CONTAINER_REGISTRY = registry.access.redhat.com
 BASE_IMAGE = $(CONTAINER_REGISTRY)/ubi$(OS_VERSION)/ubi:latest
 endif
 
-CONTAINER_NGINX_IMAGE_REGISTRY ?=  registry.nginx.com
+CONTAINER_NGINX_IMAGE_REGISTRY ?=  docker-registry.nginx.com
 
 CONTAINER_VARS = CONTAINER_CLITOOL CONTAINER_COMPOSE CONTAINER_BUILDENV CONTAINER_OS_TYPE CONTAINER_REGISTRY CONTAINER_NGINX_IMAGE_REGISTRY
diff --git a/scripts/performance/profiling.sh b/scripts/performance/profiling.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..d7db73170
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/performance/profiling.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+
+# This script runs Go tests with CPU profiling enabled for all test packages found under the directories:
+#   - internal/watcher
+# It saves the CPU profiles in the $PROFILES_DIR directory with the format <package-name>_<test_type>.pprof
+#   e.g. <package-name>_watcher_cpu.pprof
+
+# The variables below can be set to customize the environment for the integration tests:
+# Example using variables defined in our Makefile:
+#   TEST_ENV=ci CONTAINER_OS_TYPE=linux BUILD_TARGET=agent PACKAGES_REPO=nginxinc \
+#     PACKAGE_NAME=nginx-agent BASE_IMAGE=ubuntu OS_VERSION=20.04 OS_RELEASE=focal \
+#     DOCKERFILE_PATH=Dockerfile IMAGE_PATH=nginxinc/nginx-agent TAG=latest CONTAINER_NGINX_IMAGE_REGISTRY=docker.io \
+#     ./scripts/performance/profiling.sh
+
+set -e
+set -o pipefail
+
+PROFILES_DIR="build/test/profiles"
+mkdir -p ${PROFILES_DIR}
+
+# Run watcher tests with CPU profiling for each package
+echo "Starting watcher tests with cpu profiling..."
+packages=$(find internal/watcher -type f -name '*_test.go' -exec dirname {} \; | sort -u)
+echo "Found packages:"
+echo "$packages"
+for pkg in $packages; do
+    echo "Running tests in package: ${pkg}"
+    go test \
+      -count 10 -timeout 3m \
+      -cpuprofile "${PROFILES_DIR}/$(basename $pkg)_watcher_cpu.pprof" \
+      "./${pkg}" || { echo "Tests failed in package: ${pkg}, but continuing..."; continue; }
+    echo "Profile saved to: ${PROFILES_DIR}/$(basename $pkg)_watcher_cpu.pprof"
+done
+
+## Merge all CPU profiles
+files=$(ls ${PROFILES_DIR}/*.pprof)
+echo "Merging CPU profiles: $files"
+go tool pprof -proto -output=${PROFILES_DIR}/merged.pprof $files
+echo "Merged CPU profile saved to: ${PROFILES_DIR}/merged.pprof"
diff --git a/test/docker/load/Dockerfile b/test/docker/load/Dockerfile
index a1eeb4ee8..537f4f204 100644
--- a/test/docker/load/Dockerfile
+++ b/test/docker/load/Dockerfile
@@ -4,9 +4,6 @@ LABEL maintainer="NGINX Docker Maintainers <docker-maint@nginx.com>"
 # https://askubuntu.com/questions/909277/avoiding-user-interaction-with-tzdata-when-installing-certbot-in-a-docker-contai
 ARG DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
 
-WORKDIR /agent
-COPY . /agent
-
 RUN --mount=type=secret,id=nginx-crt,dst=nginx-repo.crt \
     --mount=type=secret,id=nginx-key,dst=nginx-repo.key \
     set -x \
@@ -59,9 +56,10 @@ ARG GO_VERSION
 ARG OSARCH
 
 # Install Go
-RUN wget https://go.dev/dl/go${GO_VERSION}.linux-${OSARCH}.tar.gz \
-    && tar -xvf go${GO_VERSION}.linux-${OSARCH}.tar.gz \
-    && mv go /usr/local
+RUN wget -q https://go.dev/dl/go${GO_VERSION}.linux-${OSARCH}.tar.gz \
+    && tar -xf go${GO_VERSION}.linux-${OSARCH}.tar.gz \
+    && mv go /usr/local > /dev/null \
+    && rm go${GO_VERSION}.linux-${OSARCH}.tar.gz
 
 ENV DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
 ENV GOROOT=/usr/local/go
@@ -69,21 +67,22 @@ ENV CGO_ENABLED=0
 ENV PATH="/usr/local/go/bin:${PATH}" 
 ENV PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin
 
+WORKDIR /agent
+COPY . /agent/
+
 RUN mv /agent/test/config/agent/nginx-agent-otel-load.conf /agent/test/load/nginx-agent.conf
-RUN mkdir /var/run/nginx-agent/ /var/log/nginx-agent/ /etc/nginx-agent/ 
+RUN mkdir /var/run/nginx-agent/ /var/log/nginx-agent/ /etc/nginx-agent/
 
-WORKDIR /agent/
 CMD make install-tools
 
 FROM configure-go as run-tests
 
 WORKDIR /agent/
 
-RUN make build
-RUN chmod -R +x ./build
-
-WORKDIR /agent/test/load
-
-RUN go test -v -timeout 1m ./...
+## Pre-download Go modules
+RUN go mod tidy
+RUN make build && ls -la /agent/build && /agent/build/nginx-agent -v
 
-CMD ["sh", "-c", "cat benchmarks.json"]
+COPY test/docker/load/entrypoint.sh entrypoint.sh
+RUN chmod +x entrypoint.sh
+CMD ["/agent/test/docker/load/entrypoint.sh"]
diff --git a/test/docker/load/entrypoint.sh b/test/docker/load/entrypoint.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..998a0e3d5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/docker/load/entrypoint.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+PROFILE=${PROFILE:-"false"}
+BENCHMARKS_DIR="/agent/performance/load"
+
+load_test() {
+  echo "Running load tests..."
+  pushd test/load
+  go test -v -timeout 1m ./...
+  cp benchmarks.json ${BENCHMARKS_DIR}
+  cp -r results ${BENCHMARKS_DIR}
+  popd
+}
+
+load_test_with_profile() {
+  echo "Running load tests with CPU Profiling enabled..."
+  pushd test/load
+  go test -v -timeout 1m ./... \
+    -cpuprofile metrics_load_cpu.pprof
+  cp benchmarks.json ${BENCHMARKS_DIR}
+  cp -r results ${BENCHMARKS_DIR}
+  cp *.pprof ${BENCHMARKS_DIR}
+  popd
+}
+
+## Main script execution starts here
+mkdir -p ${BENCHMARKS_DIR}
+echo "Running in $(pwd)"
+if [[ "$PROFILE" == "true" ]]; then
+  echo "CPU Profiling is enabled."
+  load_test_with_profile || { echo "Load tests with cpu profiling failed"; exit 1; }
+else
+  load_test || { echo "Load tests failed"; exit 1; }
+fi
+echo "Done."
diff --git a/test/load/otel_collector_plugin_load_test.go b/test/load/otel_collector_plugin_load_test.go
index fa4db0b2b..d503cbe7a 100644
--- a/test/load/otel_collector_plugin_load_test.go
+++ b/test/load/otel_collector_plugin_load_test.go
@@ -33,54 +33,70 @@ func TestMetric10kDPS(t *testing.T) {
 	name := fmt.Sprintf("OTLP-%s-%s", runtime.GOOS, binary)
 	sender := testbed.NewOTLPMetricDataSender(testbed.DefaultHost, 4317)
 	receiver := testbed.NewOTLPDataReceiver(5643)
-	receiver = receiver.WithCompression("none")
 
-	t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
-		require.NoError(t, err)
+	tests := []struct {
+		name        string
+		compression string
+	}{
+		{
+			name:        name + "-none",
+			compression: "none",
+		},
+	}
 
-		options := testbed.LoadOptions{
-			DataItemsPerSecond: 10_000,
-			ItemsPerBatch:      100,
-			Parallel:           1,
-		}
+	for _, test := range tests {
+		t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			require.NoError(t, err)
+
+			options := testbed.LoadOptions{
+				DataItemsPerSecond: 10_000,
+				ItemsPerBatch:      100,
+				Parallel:           1,
+			}
 
-		agentProc := NewNginxAgentProcessCollector(WithEnvVar("GOMAXPROCS", "10"))
+			t.Logf("Running test case: %s (compression=%s)x", test.name, test.compression)
 
-		dataProvider := testbed.NewPerfTestDataProvider(options)
-		tc := testbed.NewTestCase(
-			t,
-			dataProvider,
-			sender,
-			receiver,
-			agentProc,
-			&testbed.PerfTestValidator{},
-			performanceResultsSummary,
-			// this resource spec is overwritten in the agent process collector
-			testbed.WithResourceLimits(testbed.ResourceSpec{}),
-		)
+			agentProc := NewNginxAgentProcessCollector(WithEnvVar("GOMAXPROCS", "10"))
 
-		t.Cleanup(tc.Stop)
+			receiver = receiver.WithCompression(test.compression)
 
-		tc.StartBackend()
-		tc.StartAgent()
+			dataProvider := testbed.NewPerfTestDataProvider(options)
+			tc := testbed.NewTestCase(
+				t,
+				dataProvider,
+				sender,
+				receiver,
+				agentProc,
+				&testbed.PerfTestValidator{},
+				performanceResultsSummary,
+				// this resource spec is overwritten in the agent process collector
+				testbed.WithResourceLimits(testbed.ResourceSpec{}),
+			)
 
-		tc.StartLoad(options)
+			t.Cleanup(tc.Stop)
 
-		tc.WaitFor(func() bool { return tc.LoadGenerator.IsReady() }, "load generator ready")
+			tc.StartBackend()
+			tc.StartAgent()
 
-		tc.WaitFor(func() bool { return tc.LoadGenerator.DataItemsSent() > 0 }, "load generator started")
+			tc.StartLoad(options)
 
-		tc.Sleep(tc.Duration)
+			tc.WaitFor(func() bool { return tc.LoadGenerator.IsReady() }, "load generator ready")
 
-		tc.StopLoad()
+			tc.WaitFor(func() bool { return tc.LoadGenerator.DataItemsSent() > 0 }, "load generator started")
 
-		tc.WaitFor(func() bool { return tc.LoadGenerator.DataItemsSent() == tc.MockBackend.DataItemsReceived() },
-			"all data items received")
+			tc.Sleep(tc.Duration)
 
-		tc.ValidateData()
-	})
+			tc.StopLoad()
 
-	defer testbed.SaveResults(performanceResultsSummary)
+			tc.WaitFor(func() bool { return tc.LoadGenerator.DataItemsSent() == tc.MockBackend.DataItemsReceived() },
+				"all data items received")
+
+			tc.ValidateData()
+		})
+
+		// Save intermediate results after each test case
+		testbed.SaveResults(performanceResultsSummary)
+	}
 }
 
 func parseBinary(s string) string {