Crossword

A season wrap-up with talk of a new WP Engine product positioned against VIP-style publishing. Conversation about acquisitions, agency partnerships, and how specialized WordPress offerings are marketed. A split Agent Skills repo sparks debate on teaching AI to contribute to WordPress. They also discuss AI agents, resource costs, and practical personal AI workflows.

Jonathan and Luke have a chat with Jonathan Desrosiers, WordPress Core Committer and Principle Software Engineer at Bluehost. They discuss a recent episode of Crossword and a preview of Desrosiers's now published blog post. Wold asks for clarity on do-acracy vs meritocracy and the three discuss the importance of both active and passive contributions. Desrosiers offers his guidance for new contributors.

A lively debate about plugin piracy, GPL redistribution, and how that complicates sustainable business models. A shift to the WordPress project’s bold goals for 2026, including contributor momentum and release planning. A cautious discussion of AI’s role in tooling and whether content-generation belongs in the platform. A provocative idea about evolving WordPress into an operating-system-like platform.

Jeff Paul, VP of Open Source Solutions at Fueled and long-time WordPress contributor, shares his contributor origin story and non-developer ways to help. He explains project-management roles in Core and why text-based meetings boost accessibility. They discuss release cadence, volunteer management, hosting differences, and what roles are most needed now.

Luke kicks off Crossword with a surprise and Jonathan rolls with it. They discuss fresh WordPress drama, the plugin review team’s use (or non-use) of AI, and Luke shares his take on AI in WordPress plugins.

Rae Morey, publisher of The Repository and former newsroom journalist turned WordPress reporter, joins to discuss big 2025 stories and how she built the newsletter. Conversations cover the WP Engine–Automattic lawsuit, why negative news dominates, Campus Connect and WordPress credits, predictions about WordPress 7.0 and collaboration, the impact of AI, and the financial sustainability of an independent newsletter.

Tammie Lister, a designer and product practitioner known for her impactful work on WordPress, joins to discuss innovative concepts like vibe coding and product thinking. She explores how tools like Figma and paper sketching can enhance communication in design. Tammie passionately argues for the ongoing relevance of WordPress and the importance of personal expression in themes. With playful banter about cricket and culture, she also touches on the need for calm products that consider both human and environmental impact.

Luke and Jonathan dive into tech talk, exploring the quirky world of typography and its impact on WordPress. They compare the rigidity of closed platforms like Apple with the freedom of open source. Jonathan emphasizes the need for constructive criticism accompanied by active contribution. Luke shares his frustrations with the Notes feature, discussing its integration with comments and the necessary UI improvements. The duo navigates technical hurdles, reflecting on the challenges of modifying post lists for better user experience.

The hosts dive into the intriguing updates of WordPress 6.9, sharing their initial experiences. Luke critiques the new stretchy blocks while Jonathan highlights the MathML block for algebra posts. They discuss the innovative hide-block feature and its impact on publishing workflows. Performance boosts from WP Engine get a nod, while the debate on comparing WordPress releases to other platforms unfolds. Developer-focused enhancements like the Abilities API also take center stage. It's a lively exploration of what's new and exciting in the world of WordPress!

Jonathan and Luke discuss Matt’s keynote and the reversal in their expectations going into the event. They share their surprise at a particular data point and Luke offers a few highlights from his recent experience at Enqueue in Sydney.