#897 - WP-Tonic This Week in WordPress & SaaS: With Special Guest Matt Mullenweg, Co-founder of WordPress & CEO of Automattic

We Interview Matt Mullenweg, Co-founder of WordPress & CEO of Automatic

Step into the world of WordPress with our semi-spicy interview featuring Matt Mullenweg, co-founder and visionary behind one of the most powerful platforms on the web. Gain unique insights into his entrepreneurial journey, leadership philosophy at Automattic, and exciting updates on what’s next for WordPress. Dive deep into this thought-provoking discussion by being part of our exclusive show.

#1 - Matt, we are now In the fifth year of the Gutenberg project. Recently, great progress has been made, but many in the WordPress community are still worried about the progress speed and the project's fundamental direction. What are your views on this?

#2 - Do you feel it's possible with a semi-open source project like WordPress, which has around 43% to 45% of the market share, for it to be both a professional (actual agency level tool) and an all-embracing DIY solution similar to Wix is this possible?

#3 - Recently, many of us watched Open AI semi-imploded. From the outside looking in, it seemed inherent stresses between what open-source objectives are and what commercial capitalism looks for and requires fell in the conflict. What are your views connected to what has happened inside OpenAI and its problems with governance? What alignment or similarity can we infer between WP and OpenAI?

#4 - A few years ago, you made the public statement that you were the "benevolent dictator" of WordPress. Have your views on this particular statement changed, and if not, why do you feel this situation is okay connected to one of the most significant open-source projects on the web?

#5 - With some personal reflection, do you regret making some of your recent public statements on X (formally known as Twitter) connected to what might be seen as real problems related to a possible unbalance of "power dynamics?"

#6 - If you return to a time machine at the beginning of your business journey, what advice would you give yourself?

A new birth of WordPress -- and that WordPress of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the web.