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Automattic WordPress Reverses Course on Contributions
Automattic WordPress, the mother company of WordPress.com, has yet to indicate interest in switching sides again. This was made public in a blog post titled “Returning to Core”, published last week. Automattic announced it will continue its contributions to the WordPress project. This is against the initial publication that the last-month release of WordPress 6.8 would be the final major release for all of 2025.
Automattic Says It’s Ready to “Press Play” Again
According to the new blog post, Automattic is ready to “press play” again. Specifically, it reads, “After pausing our contributions to regroup, rethink, and plan strategically, we’re ready to press play again and return fully to the WordPress project.” Furthermore, you can expect to find our contributions across all of the greatest hits—WordPress Core and Gutenberg.
Moreover, you should also look out for Playground, Openverse, and WordPress.org. The team says, “This return is a moment of excitement for us, as it’s about continuing the mission we’ve always believed in. This mission is about democratizing publishing for everyone, everywhere.”
Automattic claims to have learnt much from the pause regarding the many ways WordPress is used. Additionally, Automattic, WordPress’s parent company is now committed to helping it grow and thrive. The post also notes that WordPress powers 43% of the web today, but it’s unclear what has changed.
Legal Disputes Raise Questions About Automattic WordPress’s Motives
Nevertheless, sources reveal that Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg explained in a recent internal post that he wants to get a 6.9 release out this year. The company he heads will do this with an admin refresh and something from the “new AI team.” However, sources familiar with the discussion reference a post saying, “I don’t think that will happen without our contributions.”
In the same vein, some wonder if Mullenweg was pressured into this move or not. As an alternative, they asked if he realized that pulling back wasn’t good for his business or its name. Others are debating if this change of heart is due to Automattic’s ongoing litigation with WordPress’ hosting company, WP Engine, which Automattic has called a “threat” to the WordPress community and a “cancer to WordPress”.
However, no one knows what to believe, and none of these backchannel theories align with the officially stated reason.
Mullenweg believes that Automattic WordPress has been engaged in a legal dispute over how little it contributes to WordPress overall. He also thinks the hosting company is profiting from WordPress’s open-source work without giving anything in return. Mullenweg also contends that WPEngine benefits from the confusion between WordPress and commercial services like WP Engine. Consequently, he banned the company from accessing WordPress.org and sued in court for unauthorized trademark adoption.
In other words, Automattic WordPress believes WP Engine should have to pay a direct licensing fee. Alternatively, it could increase its contributions to the open-source WordPress project. The final option is to scheme them out of using their trademark moving forward.
WP Engine Fires Back at Automattic
WP Engine responded that it doesn’t think it needs a license. On the other hand, it contends that Automattic misunderstands trademark law and is suing Automattic WordPress in return. Other tech giants are also involved in different lawsuits based on peculiar interests. OpenAI has its own, the same as Apple, Meta, and other tech giants.
Meanwhile, Automattic laid off 16% of its staff last month, saying the restructuring was necessary. Automattic WordPress linked this with being more agile and improving productivity and profitability.
