diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 79663b6d39f..b0dc48153b4 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 - Support for vars in top level ansible watches. ([#2147](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2147))
 - Support for `"ansible.operator-sdk/verbosity"` annotation on Custom Resources watched by Ansible based operators to override verbosity on an individual resource. ([#2102](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2102))
 - Support for relative helm chart paths in the Helm operator's watches.yaml file. ([#2287](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2287))
+- New `operator-sdk generate crds` subcommand, which generates CRDs from Go types. ([#2276](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2276))
 
 ### Changed
 - Upgrade minimal Ansible version in the init projects from `2.4` to `2.6`. ([#2107](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2107))
@@ -17,6 +18,7 @@
 - Replace Role verb `"*"` with list of verb strings in generated files so the Role is compatible with OpenShift and Kubernetes. ([#2175](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2175))
 
 ### Deprecated
+- Deprecated the `operator-sdk generate openapi` command. CRD generation is still supported with `operator-sdk generate crds`. It is now recommended to use [openapi-gen](https://github.com/kubernetes/kube-openapi/tree/master/cmd/openapi-gen) directly for OpenAPI code generation. The `generate openapi` subcommand will be removed in a future release. ([#2276](https://github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/pull/2276))
 
 ### Removed
 
diff --git a/cmd/operator-sdk/add/api.go b/cmd/operator-sdk/add/api.go
index fcbd8ce109e..b4e4b20af8f 100644
--- a/cmd/operator-sdk/add/api.go
+++ b/cmd/operator-sdk/add/api.go
@@ -40,17 +40,17 @@ func newAddApiCmd() *cobra.Command {
 	apiCmd := &cobra.Command{
 		Use:   "api",
 		Short: "Adds a new api definition under pkg/apis",
-		Long: `operator-sdk add api --kind=<kind> --api-version=<group/version> creates the
-api definition for a new custom resource under pkg/apis. This command must be
-run from the project root directory. If the api already exists at
-pkg/apis/<group>/<version> then the command will not overwrite and return an
-error.
+		Long: `operator-sdk add api --kind=<kind> --api-version=<group/version> creates
+the api definition for a new custom resource under pkg/apis. This command
+must be run from the project root directory. If the api already exists at
+pkg/apis/<group>/<version> then the command will not overwrite and return
+an error.
 
-By default, this command runs Kubernetes deepcopy and OpenAPI V3 generators on
+By default, this command runs Kubernetes deepcopy and CRD generators on
 tagged types in all paths under pkg/apis. Go code is generated under
-pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.{deepcopy,openapi}.go. CRD's are
-generated, or updated if they exist for a particular group + version + kind,
-under deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI V3 validation YAML
+pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.deepcopy.go. CRD's are generated,
+or updated if they exist for a particular group + version + kind, under
+deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI V3 validation YAML
 is generated as a 'validation' object. Generation can be disabled with the
 --skip-generation flag.
 
@@ -67,7 +67,6 @@ Example:
 			├── register.go
 			├── appservice_types.go
 			├── zz_generated.deepcopy.go
-			├── zz_generated.openapi.go
 	$ tree deploy/crds
 	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_v1alpha1_appservice_cr.yaml
 	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
@@ -143,7 +142,7 @@ func apiRun(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
 		}
 
 		// Generate a validation spec for the new CRD.
-		if err := genutil.OpenAPIGen(); err != nil {
+		if err := genutil.CRDGen(); err != nil {
 			return err
 		}
 	}
diff --git a/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/cmd.go b/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/cmd.go
index d574ecc7c99..b8bea95e55c 100644
--- a/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/cmd.go
+++ b/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/cmd.go
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ func NewCmd() *cobra.Command {
 		Long:  `The operator-sdk generate command invokes specific generator to generate code as needed.`,
 	}
 	cmd.AddCommand(newGenerateK8SCmd())
+	cmd.AddCommand(newGenerateCRDsCmd())
 	cmd.AddCommand(newGenerateOpenAPICmd())
 	return cmd
 }
diff --git a/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/crds.go b/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/crds.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..901d2fc127b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/crds.go
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+// Copyright 2019 The Operator-SDK Authors
+//
+// Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+// you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+// You may obtain a copy of the License at
+//
+//     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+//
+// Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+// distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+// WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+// See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+// limitations under the License.
+
+package generate
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+
+	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil"
+	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+)
+
+func newGenerateCRDsCmd() *cobra.Command {
+	return &cobra.Command{
+		Use:   "crds",
+		Short: "Generates CRDs for API's",
+		Long: `generate crds generates CRDs or updates them if they exist,
+under deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI
+V3 validation YAML is generated as a 'validation' object.
+
+Example:
+
+	$ operator-sdk generate crds
+	$ tree deploy/crds
+	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_v1alpha1_appservice_cr.yaml
+	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
+`,
+		RunE: crdsFunc,
+	}
+}
+
+func crdsFunc(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
+	if len(args) != 0 {
+		return fmt.Errorf("command %s doesn't accept any arguments", cmd.CommandPath())
+	}
+
+	return genutil.CRDGen()
+}
diff --git a/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/openapi.go b/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/openapi.go
index b6fe7b4f7bb..44fab37ef04 100644
--- a/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/openapi.go
+++ b/cmd/operator-sdk/generate/openapi.go
@@ -23,8 +23,9 @@ import (
 
 func newGenerateOpenAPICmd() *cobra.Command {
 	return &cobra.Command{
-		Use:   "openapi",
-		Short: "Generates OpenAPI specs for API's",
+		Hidden: true,
+		Use:    "openapi",
+		Short:  "Generates OpenAPI specs for API's",
 		Long: `generate openapi generates OpenAPI validation specs in Go from tagged types
 in all pkg/apis/<group>/<version> directories. Go code is generated under
 pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.openapi.go. CRD's are generated, or
@@ -48,10 +49,34 @@ Example:
 	}
 }
 
+const deprecationTemplate = "\033[1;36m%s\033[0m"
+
 func openAPIFunc(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) error {
+	fmt.Printf(deprecationTemplate, `[Deprecation notice] The 'operator-sdk generate openapi' command is deprecated!
+
+ - To generate CRDs, use 'operator-sdk generate crds'.
+ - To generate Go OpenAPI code, use 'openapi-gen'. For example:
+
+      # Build the latest openapi-gen from source
+      which ./bin/openapi-gen > /dev/null || go build -o ./bin/openapi-gen k8s.io/kube-openapi/cmd/openapi-gen
+
+      # Run openapi-gen for each of your API group/version packages
+      ./bin/openapi-gen --logtostderr=true -o "" -i ./pkg/apis/<group>/<version> -O zz_generated.openapi -p ./pkg/apis/<group>/<version> -h ./hack/boilerplate.go.txt -r "-"
+
+`)
+
 	if len(args) != 0 {
 		return fmt.Errorf("command %s doesn't accept any arguments", cmd.CommandPath())
 	}
 
-	return genutil.OpenAPIGen()
+	fs := []func() error{
+		genutil.OpenAPIGen,
+		genutil.CRDGen,
+	}
+	for _, f := range fs {
+		if err := f(); err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+	}
+	return nil
 }
diff --git a/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/crds.go b/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/crds.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..fad4bea8a8b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/crds.go
@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+// Copyright 2018 The Operator-SDK Authors
+//
+// Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+// you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+// You may obtain a copy of the License at
+//
+//     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+//
+// Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+// distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+// WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+// See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+// limitations under the License.
+
+package genutil
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+
+	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/scaffold"
+	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/scaffold/input"
+	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/util/k8sutil"
+	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/util/projutil"
+
+	log "github.com/sirupsen/logrus"
+)
+
+// CRDGen generates CRDs for all APIs in pkg/apis.
+func CRDGen() error {
+	projutil.MustInProjectRoot()
+
+	absProjectPath := projutil.MustGetwd()
+	repoPkg := projutil.GetGoPkg()
+
+	gvMap, err := k8sutil.ParseGroupSubpackages(scaffold.ApisDir)
+	if err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("failed to parse group versions: (%v)", err)
+	}
+	gvb := &strings.Builder{}
+	for g, vs := range gvMap {
+		gvb.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s:%v, ", g, vs))
+	}
+
+	log.Infof("Running CRD generation for Custom Resource group versions: [%v]\n", gvb.String())
+
+	s := &scaffold.Scaffold{}
+	cfg := &input.Config{
+		Repo:           repoPkg,
+		AbsProjectPath: absProjectPath,
+		ProjectName:    filepath.Base(absProjectPath),
+	}
+	crds, err := k8sutil.GetCRDs(scaffold.CRDsDir)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	for _, crd := range crds {
+		g, v, k := crd.Spec.Group, crd.Spec.Version, crd.Spec.Names.Kind
+		if v == "" {
+			if len(crd.Spec.Versions) != 0 {
+				v = crd.Spec.Versions[0].Name
+			} else {
+				return fmt.Errorf("crd of group %s kind %s has no version", g, k)
+			}
+		}
+		r, err := scaffold.NewResource(g+"/"+v, k)
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+		err = s.Execute(cfg,
+			&scaffold.CRD{Resource: r, IsOperatorGo: projutil.IsOperatorGo()},
+		)
+		if err != nil {
+			return err
+		}
+	}
+
+	log.Info("CRD generation complete.")
+	return nil
+}
diff --git a/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/openapi.go b/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/openapi.go
index 989583adb38..57006a9e890 100644
--- a/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/openapi.go
+++ b/cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/openapi.go
@@ -22,7 +22,6 @@ import (
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/scaffold"
-	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/scaffold/input"
 	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/util/k8sutil"
 	"github.com/operator-framework/operator-sdk/internal/util/projutil"
 
@@ -36,7 +35,6 @@ import (
 func OpenAPIGen() error {
 	projutil.MustInProjectRoot()
 
-	absProjectPath := projutil.MustGetwd()
 	repoPkg := projutil.GetGoPkg()
 
 	gvMap, err := k8sutil.ParseGroupSubpackages(scaffold.ApisDir)
@@ -57,37 +55,6 @@ func OpenAPIGen() error {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	s := &scaffold.Scaffold{}
-	cfg := &input.Config{
-		Repo:           repoPkg,
-		AbsProjectPath: absProjectPath,
-		ProjectName:    filepath.Base(absProjectPath),
-	}
-	crds, err := k8sutil.GetCRDs(scaffold.CRDsDir)
-	if err != nil {
-		return err
-	}
-	for _, crd := range crds {
-		g, v, k := crd.Spec.Group, crd.Spec.Version, crd.Spec.Names.Kind
-		if v == "" {
-			if len(crd.Spec.Versions) != 0 {
-				v = crd.Spec.Versions[0].Name
-			} else {
-				return fmt.Errorf("crd of group %s kind %s has no version", g, k)
-			}
-		}
-		r, err := scaffold.NewResource(g+"/"+v, k)
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-		err = s.Execute(cfg,
-			&scaffold.CRD{Resource: r, IsOperatorGo: projutil.IsOperatorGo()},
-		)
-		if err != nil {
-			return err
-		}
-	}
-
 	log.Info("Code-generation complete.")
 	return nil
 }
diff --git a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_add_api.md b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_add_api.md
index 09ec1cbf185..bc68d84d3f4 100644
--- a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_add_api.md
+++ b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_add_api.md
@@ -4,17 +4,17 @@ Adds a new api definition under pkg/apis
 
 ### Synopsis
 
-operator-sdk add api --kind=<kind> --api-version=<group/version> creates the
-api definition for a new custom resource under pkg/apis. This command must be
-run from the project root directory. If the api already exists at
-pkg/apis/<group>/<version> then the command will not overwrite and return an
-error.
+operator-sdk add api --kind=<kind> --api-version=<group/version> creates
+the api definition for a new custom resource under pkg/apis. This command
+must be run from the project root directory. If the api already exists at
+pkg/apis/<group>/<version> then the command will not overwrite and return
+an error.
 
-By default, this command runs Kubernetes deepcopy and OpenAPI V3 generators on
+By default, this command runs Kubernetes deepcopy and CRD generators on
 tagged types in all paths under pkg/apis. Go code is generated under
-pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.{deepcopy,openapi}.go. CRD's are
-generated, or updated if they exist for a particular group + version + kind,
-under deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI V3 validation YAML
+pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.deepcopy.go. CRD's are generated,
+or updated if they exist for a particular group + version + kind, under
+deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI V3 validation YAML
 is generated as a 'validation' object. Generation can be disabled with the
 --skip-generation flag.
 
@@ -31,7 +31,6 @@ Example:
 			├── register.go
 			├── appservice_types.go
 			├── zz_generated.deepcopy.go
-			├── zz_generated.openapi.go
 	$ tree deploy/crds
 	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_v1alpha1_appservice_cr.yaml
 	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
diff --git a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate.md b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate.md
index cf1bef810e2..1f2c7a8228d 100644
--- a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate.md
+++ b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate.md
@@ -15,6 +15,6 @@ The operator-sdk generate command invokes specific generator to generate code as
 ### SEE ALSO
 
 * [operator-sdk](operator-sdk.md)	 - An SDK for building operators with ease
+* [operator-sdk generate crds](operator-sdk_generate_crds.md)	 - Generates CRDs for API's
 * [operator-sdk generate k8s](operator-sdk_generate_k8s.md)	 - Generates Kubernetes code for custom resource
-* [operator-sdk generate openapi](operator-sdk_generate_openapi.md)	 - Generates OpenAPI specs for API's
 
diff --git a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate_crds.md b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate_crds.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..85005d70227
--- /dev/null
+++ b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate_crds.md
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+## operator-sdk generate crds
+
+Generates CRDs for API's
+
+### Synopsis
+
+generate crds generates CRDs or updates them if they exist,
+under deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI
+V3 validation YAML is generated as a 'validation' object.
+
+Example:
+
+	$ operator-sdk generate crds
+	$ tree deploy/crds
+	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_v1alpha1_appservice_cr.yaml
+	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
+
+
+```
+operator-sdk generate crds [flags]
+```
+
+### Options
+
+```
+  -h, --help   help for crds
+```
+
+### SEE ALSO
+
+* [operator-sdk generate](operator-sdk_generate.md)	 - Invokes specific generator
+
diff --git a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate_openapi.md b/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate_openapi.md
deleted file mode 100644
index 2f6354a3f70..00000000000
--- a/doc/cli/operator-sdk_generate_openapi.md
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,40 +0,0 @@
-## operator-sdk generate openapi
-
-Generates OpenAPI specs for API's
-
-### Synopsis
-
-generate openapi generates OpenAPI validation specs in Go from tagged types
-in all pkg/apis/<group>/<version> directories. Go code is generated under
-pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.openapi.go. CRD's are generated, or
-updated if they exist for a particular group + version + kind, under
-deploy/crds/<full group>_<resource>_crd.yaml; OpenAPI V3 validation YAML
-is generated as a 'validation' object.
-
-Example:
-
-	$ operator-sdk generate openapi
-	$ tree pkg/apis
-	pkg/apis/
-	└── app
-		└── v1alpha1
-			├── zz_generated.openapi.go
-	$ tree deploy/crds
-	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_v1alpha1_appservice_cr.yaml
-	├── deploy/crds/app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
-
-
-```
-operator-sdk generate openapi [flags]
-```
-
-### Options
-
-```
-  -h, --help   help for openapi
-```
-
-### SEE ALSO
-
-* [operator-sdk generate](operator-sdk_generate.md)	 - Invokes specific generator
-
diff --git a/doc/operator-scope.md b/doc/operator-scope.md
index ccdecedc7f3..646646f43be 100644
--- a/doc/operator-scope.md
+++ b/doc/operator-scope.md
@@ -131,7 +131,6 @@ This scope is ideal for the cases where an instance(CR) of some Kind(CRD) will b
     // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
     // Memcached is the Schema for the memcacheds API
-    // +k8s:openapi-gen=true
     // +kubebuilder:resource:path=memcacheds,scope=Cluster
     type Memcached struct {
       metav1.TypeMeta   `json:",inline"`
@@ -141,7 +140,7 @@ This scope is ideal for the cases where an instance(CR) of some Kind(CRD) will b
       Status MemcachedStatus `json:"status,omitempty"`
     }
     ``` 
-- Execute the command `operator-sdk generate openapi`, then you should be able to check that the CRD was updated with the cluster scope as in the following example:
+- Execute the command `operator-sdk generate crds`, then you should be able to check that the CRD was updated with the cluster scope as in the following example:
   
 * `deploy/crds/cache.example.com_memcacheds_crd.yaml`
     ```YAML
diff --git a/doc/sdk-cli-reference.md b/doc/sdk-cli-reference.md
index d3a3acfe2a9..3bdca9aa648 100644
--- a/doc/sdk-cli-reference.md
+++ b/doc/sdk-cli-reference.md
@@ -134,6 +134,21 @@ pkg/apis/app/v1alpha1/
 
 ### openapi
 
+> **DEPRECATED**
+>
+> The `operator-sdk generate openapi` command is deprecated
+>  - To generate CRDs, use 'operator-sdk generate crds'.
+>  - To generate Go OpenAPI code, use 'openapi-gen'. For example:
+>
+>    ```console  
+>    # Build the latest openapi-gen from source
+>    which ./bin/openapi-gen > /dev/null || go build -o ./bin/openapi-gen k8s.io/kube-openapi/cmd/openapi-gen
+>    
+>    # Run openapi-gen for each of your API group/version packages
+>    ./bin/openapi-gen --logtostderr=true -o "" -i ./pkg/apis/<group>/<version> -O zz_generated.openapi -p ./pkg/apis/<group>/<version> -h ./hack/boilerplate.go.txt -r "-"
+>    ```
+
+
 Runs the [kube-openapi][openapi-code-generator] OpenAPIv3 code generator for all Custom Resource Definition (CRD) API tagged fields under `pkg/apis/...`.
 
 **Note**: This command must be run every time a tagged API struct or struct field for a custom resource type is updated.
@@ -145,7 +160,7 @@ $ tree pkg/apis/app/v1alpha1/
 pkg/apis/app/v1alpha1/
 ├── appservice_types.go
 ├── doc.go
-├── register.go
+└── register.go
 
 $ operator-sdk generate openapi
 INFO[0000] Running OpenAPI code-generation for Custom Resource group versions: [app:[v1alpha1], ]
@@ -160,6 +175,31 @@ pkg/apis/app/v1alpha1/
 └── zz_generated.openapi.go
 ```
 
+### crds
+
+Runs CRD generation (based on controller-tools) for APIs under `pkg/apis/...`.
+
+**Note**: This command must be run every time a tagged API struct or struct field for a custom resource type is updated.
+
+#### Example
+
+```console
+$ tree pkg/apis/app/v1alpha1/
+pkg/apis/app/v1alpha1/
+├── appservice_types.go
+├── doc.go
+└── register.go
+
+$ operator-sdk generate crds
+INFO[0000] Running CRD generation for Custom Resource group versions: [app:[v1alpha1], ]
+INFO[0001] Created deploy/crds/app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
+INFO[0001] CRD generation complete.
+
+$ tree deploy/crds/
+deploy/crds
+└── app.example.com_appservices_crd.yaml
+```
+
 ## olm-catalog
 
 Parent command for all OLM Catalog related commands.
diff --git a/doc/user-guide.md b/doc/user-guide.md
index e69089e05c4..6552d35228e 100644
--- a/doc/user-guide.md
+++ b/doc/user-guide.md
@@ -86,13 +86,10 @@ type MemcachedSpec struct {
 }
 type MemcachedStatus struct {
 	// Nodes are the names of the memcached pods 
-	// +listType=set  
 	Nodes []string `json:"nodes"`
 }
 ```
 
-**NOTE:** Comment directives, such as +listType=set, are necessary in certain situations to avoid API rule violations when generating OpenAPI files. See https://godoc.org/k8s.io/kube-openapi/pkg/idl to learn more.
-
 After modifying the `*_types.go` file always run the following command to update the generated code for that resource type:
 
 ```sh
@@ -101,7 +98,7 @@ $ operator-sdk generate k8s
 
 ### OpenAPI validation
 
-OpenAPIv3 schemas are added to CRD manifests in the `spec.validation` block when the manifests are generated. This validation block allows Kubernetes to validate the properties in a Memcached Custom Resource when it is created or updated. Additionally a `pkg/apis/<group>/<version>/zz_generated.openapi.go` file is generated containing the Go representation of this validation block if the `+k8s:openapi-gen=true` annotation is present above the kind type declaration (present by default). This auto-generated code is your Go kind type's OpenAPI model, from which you can create a full OpenAPI spec and generate a client. Check out [this issue comment][openapi-details] for steps on how to do so.
+OpenAPIv3 schemas are added to CRD manifests in the `spec.validation` block when the manifests are generated. This validation block allows Kubernetes to validate the properties in a Memcached Custom Resource when it is created or updated.
 
 Markers (annotations) are available to configure validations for your API. These markers will always have a `+kubebuilder:validation` prefix. For example, adding an enum type specification can be done by adding the following marker:
 
@@ -112,14 +109,12 @@ type Alias string
 
 Usage of markers in API code is discussed in the kubebuilder [CRD generation][generating-crd] and [marker][markers] documentation. A full list of OpenAPIv3 validation markers can be found [here][crd-markers].
 
-To update the OpenAPI validation section in the CRD `deploy/crds/cache.example.com_memcacheds_crd.yaml`, run the following command:
+To update the CRD `deploy/crds/cache.example.com_memcacheds_crd.yaml`, run the following command:
 
 ```console
-$ operator-sdk generate openapi
+$ operator-sdk generate crds
 ```
 
-**Note:** You may see errors like "API rule violation" when running the above command. For information on these errors see the [API rules][api-rules] documentation
-
 An example of the generated YAML is as follows:
 
 ```YAML
@@ -136,7 +131,6 @@ spec:
 
 To learn more about OpenAPI v3.0 validation schemas in Custom Resource Definitions, refer to the [Kubernetes Documentation][doc-validation-schema].
 
-[openapi-details]: https://github.com/kubernetes/kube-openapi/issues/13#issuecomment-337719430
 [doc-validation-schema]: https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/access-kubernetes-api/custom-resources/custom-resource-definitions/#specifying-a-structural-schema
 [generating-crd]: https://book.kubebuilder.io/reference/generating-crd.html
 [markers]: https://book.kubebuilder.io/reference/markers.html
diff --git a/doc/user/migrating-existing-apis.md b/doc/user/migrating-existing-apis.md
index bd6e37eaa11..3800cf86cac 100644
--- a/doc/user/migrating-existing-apis.md
+++ b/doc/user/migrating-existing-apis.md
@@ -25,7 +25,6 @@ pkg/apis/
         ├── register.go
         ├── shared.go
         ├── zz_generated.deepcopy.go
-        ├── zz_generated.openapi.go
 ```
 
 Relevant files:
@@ -71,13 +70,11 @@ pkg/apis/
     |   ├── register.go
     |   ├── shared.go
     |   ├── zz_generated.deepcopy.go
-    |   ├── zz_generated.openapi.go
     └── v2                                # new version dir with source files for v2
         ├── catalogsourceconfig_types.go
         ├── doc.go
         ├── register.go
         ├── zz_generated.deepcopy.go
-        ├── zz_generated.openapi.go
 ```
 
 In addition to creating a new API version, the command creates an `addtoscheme_operators_v2.go` file that exposes an `AddToScheme()` function for registering `v2.CatalogSourceConfig` and `v2.CatalogSourceConfigList`.
@@ -198,12 +195,12 @@ You can now run `operator-sdk generate k8s` to generate deepcopy code for the mi
 
 ### Updating CustomResourceDefinition manifests and generating OpenAPI code
 
-Now that we've migrated all Go types to their destination packages, we must update the corresponding CustomResourceDefinition (CRD) manifests in `deploy/crds` and generate [OpenAPI][openapi-gen] validation source.
+Now that we've migrated all Go types to their destination packages, we must update the corresponding CustomResourceDefinition (CRD) manifests in `deploy/crds`.
 
 Doing so can be as simple as running the following command:
 
 ```console
-$ operator-sdk generate openapi
+$ operator-sdk generate crds
 ```
 
 This command will automatically update all CRD manifests.
@@ -216,7 +213,7 @@ Kubernetes 1.11+ supports CRD [`spec.versions`][crd-versions] and `spec.version`
 
 **Note**: `<full group>` is the full group name of your CRD while `<group>` is the last subdomain of `<full group>`, ex. `foo.bar.com` vs `foo`. `<resource>` is the plural lower-case of CRD `Kind` specified at `spec.names.plural`.
 
-**Note:** If your operator does not have custom data manually added to its CRD's, you can skip to the [following section](#golang-api-migrations-types-and-commonalities); `operator-sdk generate openapi` will handle CRD updates in that case.
+**Note:** If your operator does not have custom data manually added to its CRD's, you can skip to the [following section](#golang-api-migrations-types-and-commonalities); `operator-sdk generate crds` will handle CRD updates in that case.
 
 Upgrading from `spec.version` to `spec.versions` will be demonstrated using the following CRD manifest example:
 
@@ -388,7 +385,7 @@ Each case is different; one may require many more changes than others. However,
 1. Copying code from one Go package to another, ex. from `v1` to `v2` and `shared`.
 1. Changing import paths in project Go source files to those of new packages.
 1. Updating CRD manifests.
-    - In many cases, having sufficient [code annotations][kubebuilder-api-annotations] and running `operator-sdk generate openapi` will be enough.
+    - In many cases, having sufficient [code annotations][kubebuilder-api-annotations] and running `operator-sdk generate crds` will be enough.
 
 The Go toolchain can be your friend here too. Running `go vet ./...` can tell you what import paths require changing and what type instantiations are using fields incorrectly.
 
@@ -403,7 +400,6 @@ TODO
 [k8s-versioning]:https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/overview/kubernetes-api/#api-versioning
 [deepcopy-gen]:https://godoc.org/k8s.io/gengo/examples/deepcopy-gen
 [client-gen]:https://github.com/kubernetes/community/blob/master/contributors/devel/sig-api-machinery/generating-clientset.md
-[openapi-gen]:https://github.com/kubernetes/kube-openapi
 [controller-tools]:https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/controller-tools
 [crd-versions]:https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/access-kubernetes-api/custom-resources/custom-resource-definition-versioning/
 [crd-conv]:https://kubernetes.io/docs/tasks/access-kubernetes-api/custom-resources/custom-resource-definition-versioning/#webhook-conversion
diff --git a/hack/generate/gen-test-framework.sh b/hack/generate/gen-test-framework.sh
index 37ffc1090b5..c35cdb0eccd 100755
--- a/hack/generate/gen-test-framework.sh
+++ b/hack/generate/gen-test-framework.sh
@@ -21,7 +21,4 @@ go mod tidy
 
 # Run gen commands
 ../../build/operator-sdk generate k8s
-# TODO(camilamacedo86): remove this when the openapi gen be set to false and it no longer is generated
-# The following file is gen by openapi but it has not been committed in order to allow we clone and call the test locally in any path.
-trap_add 'rm pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/zz_generated.openapi.go' EXIT
-../../build/operator-sdk generate openapi
+../../build/operator-sdk generate crds
diff --git a/hack/tests/scaffolding/scaffold-memcached.go b/hack/tests/scaffolding/scaffold-memcached.go
index f587316b80d..0eaa59d5f8a 100644
--- a/hack/tests/scaffolding/scaffold-memcached.go
+++ b/hack/tests/scaffolding/scaffold-memcached.go
@@ -148,8 +148,7 @@ func main() {
 
 	for lineNum, line := range memcachedTypesFileLines {
 		if strings.Contains(string(line), "type MemcachedStatus struct {") {
-			memcachedTypesFileLinesIntermediate := append(memcachedTypesFileLines[:lineNum+1], []byte("\t// +listType=set"))
-			memcachedTypesFileLinesIntermediate = append(memcachedTypesFileLinesIntermediate, []byte("\tNodes []string `json:\"nodes\"`"))
+			memcachedTypesFileLinesIntermediate := append(memcachedTypesFileLines[:lineNum+1], []byte("\tNodes []string `json:\"nodes\"`"))
 			memcachedTypesFileLines = append(memcachedTypesFileLinesIntermediate, memcachedTypesFileLines[lineNum+3:]...)
 			break
 		}
@@ -169,21 +168,12 @@ func main() {
 		log.Fatalf("Error: %v\nCommand Output: %s\n", err, string(cmdOut))
 	}
 
-	log.Print("Generating openapi")
-	cmdOut, err = exec.Command("operator-sdk", "generate", "openapi").CombinedOutput()
+	log.Print("Generating CRDs")
+	cmdOut, err = exec.Command("operator-sdk", "generate", "crds").CombinedOutput()
 	if err != nil {
 		log.Fatalf("Error: %v\nCommand Output: %s\n", err, string(cmdOut))
 	}
 
-	// TODO(camilamacedo86) Move this test to a unit test in
-	// `cmd/operator-sdk/internal/genutil/`. Unit tests are
-	// faster and are run more often during development, so it
-	// would be an improvement to implement this test there.
-	log.Print("Checking API rule violations")
-	if strings.Contains(string(cmdOut), "API rule violation") {
-		log.Fatalf("Error: %v\nCommand Output: %s\n", "API rule violations :", string(cmdOut))
-	}
-
 	log.Print("Pulling new dependencies with go mod")
 	cmdOut, err = exec.Command("go", "build", "./...").CombinedOutput()
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/internal/scaffold/types.go b/internal/scaffold/types.go
index 7ce675a0822..e6b0b325c64 100644
--- a/internal/scaffold/types.go
+++ b/internal/scaffold/types.go
@@ -52,7 +52,6 @@ import (
 // NOTE: json tags are required.  Any new fields you add must have json tags for the fields to be serialized.
 
 // {{.Resource.Kind}}Spec defines the desired state of {{.Resource.Kind}}
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type {{.Resource.Kind}}Spec struct {
 	// INSERT ADDITIONAL SPEC FIELDS - desired state of cluster
 	// Important: Run "operator-sdk generate k8s" to regenerate code after modifying this file
@@ -60,7 +59,6 @@ type {{.Resource.Kind}}Spec struct {
 }
 
 // {{.Resource.Kind}}Status defines the observed state of {{.Resource.Kind}}
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type {{.Resource.Kind}}Status struct {
 	// INSERT ADDITIONAL STATUS FIELD - define observed state of cluster
 	// Important: Run "operator-sdk generate k8s" to regenerate code after modifying this file
@@ -70,7 +68,6 @@ type {{.Resource.Kind}}Status struct {
 // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
 // {{.Resource.Kind}} is the Schema for the {{ .Resource.Resource }} API
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 // +kubebuilder:subresource:status
 // +kubebuilder:resource:path={{.Resource.Resource}},scope=Namespaced
 type {{.Resource.Kind}} struct {
diff --git a/internal/scaffold/types_test.go b/internal/scaffold/types_test.go
index b1b30aa26f4..daf54f4e2c5 100644
--- a/internal/scaffold/types_test.go
+++ b/internal/scaffold/types_test.go
@@ -47,7 +47,6 @@ import (
 // NOTE: json tags are required.  Any new fields you add must have json tags for the fields to be serialized.
 
 // AppServiceSpec defines the desired state of AppService
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type AppServiceSpec struct {
 	// INSERT ADDITIONAL SPEC FIELDS - desired state of cluster
 	// Important: Run "operator-sdk generate k8s" to regenerate code after modifying this file
@@ -55,7 +54,6 @@ type AppServiceSpec struct {
 }
 
 // AppServiceStatus defines the observed state of AppService
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type AppServiceStatus struct {
 	// INSERT ADDITIONAL STATUS FIELD - define observed state of cluster
 	// Important: Run "operator-sdk generate k8s" to regenerate code after modifying this file
@@ -65,7 +63,6 @@ type AppServiceStatus struct {
 // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
 // AppService is the Schema for the appservices API
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 // +kubebuilder:subresource:status
 // +kubebuilder:resource:path=appservices,scope=Namespaced
 type AppService struct {
diff --git a/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha1/types.go b/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha1/types.go
index 3390898a53e..a2c0ebb42c4 100644
--- a/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha1/types.go
+++ b/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha1/types.go
@@ -35,7 +35,6 @@ const (
 )
 
 // ScorecardSuiteResult contains the combined results of a suite of tests.
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type ScorecardSuiteResult struct {
 	// Name is the name of the test suite
 	Name string `json:"name"`
@@ -61,7 +60,6 @@ type ScorecardSuiteResult struct {
 }
 
 // ScorecardTestResult contains the results of an individual scorecard test.
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type ScorecardTestResult struct {
 	// State is the final state of the test
 	State State `json:"state"`
@@ -84,7 +82,6 @@ type ScorecardTestResult struct {
 // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
 // ScorecardOutput is the schema for the scorecard API
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type ScorecardOutput struct {
 	metav1.TypeMeta `json:",inline"`
 	// +optional
diff --git a/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha2/types.go b/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha2/types.go
index a7c1dd4fb78..5fc6e6f7157 100644
--- a/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha2/types.go
+++ b/pkg/apis/scorecard/v1alpha2/types.go
@@ -33,7 +33,6 @@ const (
 )
 
 // ScorecardTestResult contains the results of an individual scorecard test.
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type ScorecardTestResult struct {
 	// Name is the name of the test
 	Name string `json:"name"`
@@ -52,7 +51,6 @@ type ScorecardTestResult struct {
 // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
 // ScorecardOutput is the schema for the scorecard API
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type ScorecardOutput struct {
 	metav1.TypeMeta `json:",inline"`
 	// +optional
diff --git a/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcached_types.go b/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcached_types.go
index 51561c2b469..40c0dfabab5 100644
--- a/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcached_types.go
+++ b/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcached_types.go
@@ -22,24 +22,20 @@ import (
 // NOTE: json tags are required.  Any new fields you add must have json tags for the fields to be serialized.
 
 // MemcachedSpec defines the desired state of Memcached
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type MemcachedSpec struct {
 	// Size is the size of the memcached deployment
 	Size int32 `json:"size"`
 }
 
 // MemcachedStatus defines the observed state of Memcached
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type MemcachedStatus struct {
 	// Nodes are the names of the memcached pods
-	// +listType=set
 	Nodes []string `json:"nodes"`
 }
 
 // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
 // Memcached is the Schema for the memcacheds API
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 // +kubebuilder:subresource:status
 // +kubebuilder:resource:path=memcacheds,scope=Namespaced
 type Memcached struct {
diff --git a/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcachedrs_types.go b/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcachedrs_types.go
index 7f739964447..0aad90a3265 100644
--- a/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcachedrs_types.go
+++ b/test/test-framework/pkg/apis/cache/v1alpha1/memcachedrs_types.go
@@ -22,15 +22,12 @@ import (
 // NOTE: json tags are required.  Any new fields you add must have json tags for the fields to be serialized.
 
 // MemcachedRSSpec defines the desired state of MemcachedRS
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type MemcachedRSSpec struct {
 	NumNodes int32 `json:"numNodes"`
 }
 
 // MemcachedRSStatus defines the observed state of MemcachedRS
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 type MemcachedRSStatus struct {
-	// +listType=set
 	NodeList []string `json:"nodeList"`
 	Test     bool     `json:"test"`
 }
@@ -38,7 +35,6 @@ type MemcachedRSStatus struct {
 // +k8s:deepcopy-gen:interfaces=k8s.io/apimachinery/pkg/runtime.Object
 
 // MemcachedRS is the Schema for the memcachedrs API
-// +k8s:openapi-gen=true
 // +kubebuilder:subresource:status
 // +kubebuilder:resource:path=memcachedrs,scope=Namespaced
 type MemcachedRS struct {