WordPress’s CEO is spooking the internet

Why WordPress’s CEO is spooking the internet Over the last month, internal drama at WordPress has spilled into the public, causing confusion and concern among developers. ByCassandra Cassidy October 19, 2024 • 4 min read The company that invented blogging is on the verge of self-destruction. Over the last month, internal drama at WordPress has spilled into the public domain, causing chaos for a large portion of the internet that relies on its open-source technology. WordPress is a content management system that allows people with no coding experience to run a website. It's immensely popular, hosting 43% of all websites in the world, including the ones from NASA, the White House, and Harvard University. It’s often held up as a shining example of the internet’s OG promise to democratize information by allowing developers to collaborate, study, use, and distribute software with full transparency. It’s also experiencing a total meltdown stemming from a power struggle between its founder and its largest competitor, a feud that has the potential to damage—or at least meaningfully alter—the infrastructure of the internet.