WordCamp Asia is set to return in 2026 — but not without behind-the-scenes tension. Organizers of the 2025 event say they were sidelined in choosing the next host city, shut out before a proper handover was complete, and “flushed out.” WordCamp Central, meanwhile, says it stepped in to keep the flagship event from losing momentum after the 2025 […]
Automattic Marks 20 Years, Looks Ahead to AI Era and Next 20 Years
Automattic is celebrating its 20th anniversary this month, marking two decades since Matt Mullenweg hired Donncha Ó Caoimh to help build WordPress.com. What began as a small, remote-first team has grown into a global company of nearly 1,500 people across 82 countries, powering platforms including WooCommerce, Tumblr, Jetpack, and Beeper. In a pair of blog posts last week, […]
Patricia Brun Torre Shares Grievances of 100+ Contributors with WordPress Leadership
At WordCamp Europe 2025, contributor Patricia Brun Torre presented WordPress Executive Director Mary Hubbard with a document capturing the concerns of more than 100 contributors. It outlines fear of retaliation, contributor burnout, and a growing sense of lost trust, and calls for change in how leadership and decision-making work across the WordPress project. “It’s not about blaming anyone,” […]
Can WordPress Finally Fix Five for the Future? Contributors See Rare Chance for Reform
After years of stalled conversations, a packed roundtable at WordCamp Europe 2025 has sparked fresh momentum to reform Five for the Future (5ftF), the initiative encouraging individuals and companies to give back 5% of their resources to the WordPress project. With WordPress Executive Director Mary Hubbard publicly supporting a reset and contributors rallying around clear proposals, many feel […]
WordCamp US Faces Scrutiny Over Automattic’s Role as Ticket Sales Lag
A post from the official WordCamp US X account on Wednesday stirred confusion about Automattic’s involvement in this year’s flagship WordPress event — and reignited long-standing questions about how much control the company has over the conference’s programming. “It is an Automattic event. Currently the programming team is curating all the programming and everything will be finalized through […]
AspirePress: The Quiet Project Powering FAIR’s Infrastructure.
A year ago, AspirePress didn’t exist. Today, it powers the download and update infrastructure for the FAIR project, the Linux Foundation-backed effort to decentralize WordPress core, plugin and theme distribution. But while FAIR made headlines with its public launch alongside WordCamp Europe 2025, AspirePress has remained largely under the radar — a small, volunteer-run initiative with big ambitions […]
Who’s Behind FAIR? Inside the Coalition Seeking to Redefine WordPress Software Distribution
The launch of the FAIR Package Manager — built in secret, backed by the Linux Foundation, and announced last week alongside WordCamp Europe — has sparked a wave of conversation across the WordPress ecosystem. But behind the technical promise of decentralization lies something more fundamental: a coordinated response by veteran contributors and organizations seeking to rethink how WordPress […]
WordPress Leadership Says ‘No’ to Bringing Back Sustainability Team Despite Public Plea and Community Petition
WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg and Executive Director Mary Hubbard have knocked back calls from the community to reinstate the WordPress Sustainability Team, despite a public plea and a petition that quickly gathered hundreds of signatures during WordCamp Europe 2025. The team was abruptly disbanded by Mullenweg in January over what he described as a lack of measurable output […]
Alt Ctrl Org Draws 200+ for Open Discussion on WordPress, Free Software, and Governance
The Alt Ctrl Org side event, held alongside WordCamp Europe 2025 in Basel, was initially envisioned as an informal meetup and a safe space for free expression and discussion about the open web. But the idea quickly gained traction. More than 200 people turned up, and the event was broadcast live on YouTube. When the event was first […]
The Community Responds to FAIR: Hope, Skepticism, and Support for Decentralizing WordPress
Within hours of FAIR’s launch at Alt Ctrl Org in Basel, reactions from across the WordPress community began rolling in — via blog posts, Slack threads, comment sections, and even on stage at WordCamp Europe. The Linux Foundation-backed project aims to decentralize WordPress plugin and theme distribution through a federated system of trusted repositories. Supporters say it’s a […]
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