Automattic confirms Mullenweg has returned as CEO after attempted ouster by board
Automattic says Mullenweg is back as "chairman and CEO of Automattic, with full support of the board."
On a turbulent week for Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com, the organization announced that its founder, Matt Mullenweg, has returned as CEO after being ousted by the board in an unexpected vote. The company's spokesperson confirmed the news to TechCrunch, stating that Mullenweg is the chairman and CEO, supported by top executives and other Automatticians on social media.
Earlier in the week, the board had voted to place Mullenweg on a paid leave of absence for unspecified reasons, which left him surprised. In response, Mullenweg accused board members of conspiring against him. Automattic informed TechCrunch that he was on leave and that CFO Mark Davies would lead as interim CEO with the board's confidence.
However, Mullenweg's return was met with resistance. He removed other admins from the company's Slack platform and asserted control over Automattic, even jokingly declaring himself a pirate.
As the story unfolded, Mullenweg promised a blog post about his return, but the announcement revealed his purchase of a houseboat instead. When asked if his comments about being back as CEO were genuine, he insisted he was a pirate, not a troll. Mullenweg did not provide any official comment on his return, but noted that this was likely the fifth time he has faced such a coup. Automattic has not responded to numerous requests for comment on board member Toni Schneider's departure, who now leads Bluesky.
Written by urgent.news from TechCrunch's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.