WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg is placed on paid leave by Automattic's board amid a legal war with WP Engine and allegations of evidence destruction.

The leadership of Automattic, the powerhouse behind the commercial side of WordPress, has undergone a seismic shift. Matt Mullenweg, the co-founder and longtime CEO, has been removed from his position and placed on a paid leave of absence. The move, executed by the company's board of directors, signals a breaking point in a period of intense internal and external volatility for the most widely used content management system (CMS) on the planet.

A sudden boardroom coup

The transition was far from amicable. According to internal communications shared via Slack, Mullenweg claims he was the victim of a conspiracy. He alleged that CFO Mark Davies, along with board members Ann Dunwoody, Toni Schneider, and Sue Decker, worked behind his back to orchestrate the vote. The timing of the notification was particularly abrupt; Mullenweg reported receiving the resolution only 50 minutes before the meeting began. His repeated requests to have the action reviewed by independent legal counsel were denied by the board.

In the wake of the vote, Mark Davies has stepped in to replace Mullenweg as CEO. This sudden change in command comes as Automattic attempts to stabilize its image and operations after months of public conflict initiated by its founder.

The 'nuclear' war with WP Engine

To understand the board's decision, one must look at the aggressive campaign Mullenweg waged against WP Engine. Described as a nuclear war, the dispute escalated into a high-stakes legal battle. The friction reached a peak when Automattic announced in January 2025 that it was scaling back its contributions to the WordPress core, limiting them only to critical updates and security patches. Mullenweg explicitly linked this decision to the ongoing litigation with WP Engine, effectively using the open-source core as leverage.

This strategy backfired within the developer community. At WordCamp Asia 2025, developers pleaded with Mullenweg to restore these contributions to prevent the stagnation of the WordPress core. Mullenweg's response was deflective, insisting that the responsibility lay solely with WP Engine to drop their lawsuit before Automattic would resume its full commitment to the community. This stance created a rift between the company and the very ecosystem that sustains its growth.

Allegations of missing evidence

The legal turmoil is compounded by serious accusations regarding the preservation of evidence. WP Engine filed a motion for sanctions, alleging that Mullenweg and Automattic destroyed critical communications hosted on ephemeral messaging apps like Signal, Telegram, and WhatsApp. The motion highlights a public call Mullenweg made for whistleblowers to contact him via personal phones and disappearing messages to avoid leaving records on work devices.

The situation grew more precarious when Jonathan Robins, Automattic's e-discovery vendor, reported that a phone and a laptop belonging to Mullenweg were unaccounted for. In response, Automattic fired back, claiming the missing data consisted of personal communications with romantic partners and had no relevance to the legal proceedings. They maintained that 1.5 million documents had been reviewed and five devices imaged, dismissing the motion for sanctions as a desperate move by WP Engine.

WordPress in a state of decline

While the boardroom drama captures headlines, the underlying health of the WordPress ecosystem is showing signs of strain. The platform is currently fighting a battle on two fronts: leadership instability and a shifting technological landscape. There is a documented decline in WordPress market share among CMS options and a steady drop in attendance at WordCamp events.

The plugin ecosystem, once the crown jewel of the platform, is experiencing a slow-motion decline. Many developers are reporting a shrinking base of paid users. Furthermore, the rise of AI has led to an increase in the discovery of vulnerabilities, complicating the security landscape for business owners who rely on the platform for their digital presence.

The fallout from Mullenweg's self-described nuclear war against WP Engine goes far beyond the lawsuit; it has resulted in the declining WordPress marketshare and steadily declining attendance at WordCamp.

The path forward for Automattic

With Mark Davies at the helm, Automattic faces the daunting task of repairing its relationship with the open-source community. The company must navigate a preliminary injunction granted by a federal judge in favor of WP Engine while attempting to convince plugin developers and enterprise users that the platform is stable. The removal of Mullenweg may be seen as a necessary step to decouple the brand's identity from the personal vendettas of its founder.

The industry is now watching to see if the new leadership will reverse the decision to scale back core contributions. For the global community of developers, the restoration of Automattic's commitment to the WordPress core is not just a matter of corporate policy, but a requirement for the platform's long-term survival against more agile, AI-native competitors.

Global business implications: USA, UK, and International Markets

For entrepreneurs and enterprises in the USA and UK, the instability at the top of Automattic introduces a layer of operational risk. While the WordPress software itself remains functional, the governance of the ecosystem is in flux. Businesses relying on the WordPress ecosystem should consider the following:

Legal and Compliance Risks: The ongoing litigation regarding evidence destruction and trademark infringement highlights the volatility of the platform's commercial leadership. US-based firms should ensure their hosting and maintenance contracts are robust and not overly dependent on a single vendor tied to the Automattic/WP Engine dispute.

Technical Debt and AI: The increase in vulnerabilities attributed to AI-driven discovery means that security audits are no longer optional. International firms must prioritize the update of their plugin stacks, especially as the core contribution cycle has been disrupted.

Market Diversification: The decline in market share suggests that the industry is moving toward more specialized or AI-integrated CMS solutions. For UK and US startups, this is a moment to evaluate whether the traditional WordPress architecture still meets the needs of a modern, AI-driven business model or if a transition to alternative frameworks is warranted to avoid the fallout of this corporate civil war.

Further details on the leadership change can be found via 404 Media and Search Engine Journal.

FAQ

---

Sources: Searchenginejournal (2), Netzender ·