Matt Mullenweg Explained

Birth Name:Matthew Charles Mullenweg
Birth Date:January 11, 1984
Birth Place:Houston, Texas, U.S.
Education:University of Houston
Organization:Automattic
Known For:Co-founding WordPress

Matthew Charles Mullenweg (born January 11, 1984) is an American web developer and entrepreneur. He is known as a co-founder of the free and open-source web publishing software WordPress and the founder of Automattic.

Early life and education

Mullenweg was born in Houston, Texas, and grew up in the Willowbend neighborhood.[1] His father, Chuck, was a computer programmer. Mullenweg was raised Catholic.[2] He attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts to play the saxophone, although he was frequently absent due to chronic migraines. After graduating from high school, he studied economics, philosophy and political science at the University of Houston, eventually dropping out after his sophomore year in 2004.[3] [4] [5]

WordPress

Mullenweg became enamored with blogging and started contributing updates to b2—a popular open-source blogging software—in 2002. However, Michel Valdrighi—the sole maintainer—soon ceased activity, and Mullenweg discussed prospects of creating a fork with other contributors; thus, in January 2003, Mullenweg created WordPress with Mike Little under the GPL v2-or-later open-source license[6] at the age of 19, and Valdrighi endorsed the project a few months later.[7]

In March 2003, he co-founded the Global Multimedia Protocols Group (GMPG) with Eric A. Meyer and Tantek Çelik. In April 2004, he helped launch Ping-O-Matic, a mechanism for notifying search engines about blog updates.[8]

In October 2004, he was hired by CNET who would allow him to develop WordPress part-time as part of his job. He dropped out of college and moved to San Francisco for the position.[9]

Automattic

See main article: Automattic.

Mullenweg left CNET in October 2005 to focus on WordPress full-time.[10] Soon after he announced Akismet, an initiative to reduce comment and trackback spam.[11] In December, he founded Automattic, with Akismet and managed web hosting service WordPress.com as its flagship products. In January 2006, Mullenweg recruited former Yahoo! executive Toni Schneider to join Automattic as CEO.[12]

Since 2006, he has delivered an annual "State of the Word" speech on the progress and future of the WordPress software, named after the State of the Union address.[13] [14]

In 2011, Mullenweg purchased the WordPress news website WP Tavern.[15] [16]

In January 2014, Mullenweg became CEO of Automattic. Schneider moved to work on new projects at Automattic. Mullenweg received the Heinz Award for Technology, the Economy and Employment in 2016, for "helping to democratize online publishing".[17]

Mullenweg began a three-month sabbatical from his role as CEO at the beginning of February 2024.[18] Later that month, Mullenweg engaged in a public feud with a transgender Tumblr user who, frustrated with the site's failure to address transphobic harassment, posted that she wished Mullenweg would die in a comedic way. The user was subsequently banned. Responding to user uproar, Mullenweg addressed the ban in posts on his personal Tumblr blog, in which he characterized the post as a death threat, and shared private account information about the user. Mullenweg also responded to individual commenters on Tumblr in posts and direct messages, and went to Twitter to respond to the banned user's tweets about the situation.[19] [20] A few days later, transgender employees of Tumblr and Automattic made a post on the official Tumblr staff blog characterizing his response as "unwarranted and harmful" and stating that he did not speak on their behalf. They also said that the user's post was not a realistic threat of violence and not the reason for her ban.[21]

Public disputes

On several occasions, Mullenweg has publicly challenged competitors to WordPress and WordPress.com. He has stated that he prefers to settle disputes in the court of public opinion and described his approach as "brinksmanship", noting that the potential cost of legal action could put Automattic in a "tough spot".[22]

In 2008, shortly before WordPress 2.5's release, Six Apart's Movable Type published "A WordPress 2.5 Upgrade Guide"—a comparison of their CMS with their rival, WordPress—as a company blog article that Mullenweg characterized as "desperate and dirty".[23] [24] [25] In 2013, developers on the digital marketplace Envato were banned from speaking at WordPress events after he criticized the platform for selling WordPress themes with the graphics and CSS components under a proprietary license instead of the GPL.[26]

In 2016, Mullenweg accused Wix.com, a competitor to WordPress.com, of reusing WordPress's mobile text editor code in Wix's own mobile app without adhering to the terms of the GPL. Despite the license's requirement to publish anything built with GPL code under the GPL, Wix's CEO claimed that the company open-sourced their forked version of the component and satisfied the license's terms[27] [28] before the app switched to its own fork of the MIT-licensed text editor that the WordPress editor was based upon. The new fork added a clause to the MIT license that forbids redistribution under any other license.

In 2022, Mullenweg criticized GoDaddy for not reinvesting in the WordPress project sufficiently.

WP Engine dispute

Audrey Capital

Mullenweg is a principal at angel investment firm Audrey Capital, which he co-founded in 2008 alongside Naveen Selvadurai and Audrey Kim.[29]

, the company lists investments in companies such as CoinDesk, MakerBot, Sonos, SpaceX, Ring, as well as software companies including Calm, Chartbeat, DailyBurn, Memrise, Genius, Nord Security and Telegram. It has also funded startups that provide services to web developers including Creative Market, GitLab, NPM, SendGrid, Stripe and Typekit. From 2017 to 2019, Mullenweg also served as a board member for GitLab.[30]

Mullenweg has employed a team of contributors to WordPress through Audrey Capital since 2010, who work separately from Automattic.[31] [32]

On the 20th anniversary of WordPress' initial release, Mullenweg announced a scholarship program aimed at the children of significant contributors to open-source projects. To remain in the program, participants must commit annually to a set of principles.[33]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Hardigree . Matt . Matt Mullenweg, the Houstonian behind WordPress . Houstonist . https://web.archive.org/web/20070705000727/http://www.houstonist.com/2006/01/27/houstonist_inte_1.php . 5 July 2007 . 27 January 2006 . Matt grew up in Meyer Park/Willowbend . dead.
  2. Web site: 2006-10-03 . Cardinal Blogging . 2022-11-02 . Matt Mullenweg . en-US . 2022-11-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221102030341/https://ma.tt/2006/10/cardinal-blogging/ . live .
  3. Web site: Former UH Student Helps People Find Their Voice on the Web Frustration with blogging software led Matt Mullenweg to create WordPress Give . . 28 September 2024 . 6 July 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240706195528/http://development.uh.edu/blog/former-uh-student-helps-people-find-their-voice-on-the-web-frustration-with-blogging-software-led-matt-mullenweg-to-create-wordpress/ . live .
  4. Web site: Drell. Lauren. We Don't Need No Education: Meet the Millionaire Dropouts. AOL Small Business. 2012-03-13. 2014-05-05. https://web.archive.org/web/20140505183606/http://smallbusiness.aol.com/2011/02/09/we-dont-need-no-education-meet-the-millionaire-dropouts/. dead.
  5. Web site: Matusow . Cathy . The Blog Age . Houston Press . October 28, 2004 . May 18, 2009 . April 10, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150410151942/http://houstonpress.com/2004-10-28/news/the-blog-age/full/ . dead .
  6. Web site: Evolution of b2, 180° from WordPress!. https://web.archive.org/web/20221219120125/https://b2evolution.net/about/b2evolution-vs-wordpress . 2022-12-19. b2evolution.net. 2022-12-19.
  7. Kaufmann . Zach . January 2009 . Do You Blog on WordPress? Thank Matt Mullenweg . Young Money . 7 . 6 . 2 . 1098-8300 . 2009-02-08 . 2008-12-16 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081216172342/http://www.youngmoney.com/ . dead .
  8. Web site: Spring Ping Thing. https://web.archive.org/web/20071127074639/http://photomatt.net/2004/04/19/spring-ping-thing/ . 2007-11-27 . Photo Matt . 2004-04-19.
  9. Web site: Matt . 2004-10-28 . Houston Press and CNET . 2023-09-27 . Matt Mullenweg . en-US . 2023-10-02 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231002204814/https://ma.tt/2004/10/press-and-cnet/ . live .
  10. Web site: Leaving CNET. October 21, 2005. Ma.tt. December 24, 2020. November 12, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201112012915/https://ma.tt/2005/10/leaving-cnet/. live.
  11. Web site: Akismet Stops Spam. October 26, 2005. Ma.tt. December 24, 2020. November 25, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201125164230/https://ma.tt/2005/10/akismet-stops-spam/. live.
  12. Web site: A new CEO for Automattic . Toni Schneider . 14 October 2024 . January 13, 2014.
  13. #713: Matt Mullenweg — The Art of Crafting a Sabbatical, Tips for Defending Against Hackers, Leveraging Open Source, Thriving in an AI World, and Tips for Life's Darkest Hours . The Tim Ferriss Show . . 2 January 2024 . 28 September 2024 . 14 April 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240414201622/https://tim.blog/2024/01/02/matt-mullenweg-2-transcript/ . live.
  14. Web site: 22 November 2015 . WordCamp 2006 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20241001215151/https://wordpress.org/book/2015/11/wordcamp-2006/ . 1 October 2024 . 28 September 2024 . WordPress Book.
  15. Web site: About . WP Tavern . 27 September 2024 . 11 January 2009 . It wasn’t until May 20th, 2013 when everyone was informed as to who the new owner was. It was none other than Matt Mullenweg. . 26 September 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240926235437/https://wptavern.com/about . live .
  16. Special Episode with Matt Mullenweg . WP Constellations . StellarWP . Michelle Frechette . 9 February 2024 . 25:40 . 27 September 2024 . 1 October 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20241001215144/https://stellarwp.com/podcast/special-episode-with-matt-mullenweg/ . live .
  17. News: Mandak . Joe . 'Trombone Shorty,' 4 others receive $250,000 Heinz Awards . 28 September 2024 . . . 14 September 2016 . 30 September 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240930232657/https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/sep/14/trombone-shorty-4-others-receive-250000-heinz-awar/ . live .
  18. Web site: Matt . Mullenweg . 2024-02-02 . Samattical . 2024-02-29 . Matt Mullenweg . en-US . 2024-02-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240229021933/https://ma.tt/2024/02/samattical/ . live .
  19. Web site: Silberling . Amanda . 2024-02-23 . Tumblr CEO publicly spars with trans user over account ban, revealing private account names in the process . 2024-02-29 . TechCrunch . en-US . 2024-02-28 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240228155655/https://techcrunch.com/2024/02/22/tumblr-ceo-publicly-spars-with-trans-user-over-account-ban-revealing-private-account-names-in-the-process/ . live .
  20. Web site: de Luna . Elizabeth . 2024-02-24 . Tumblr CEO's public 'meltdown' is mocked, memed by users . 2024-02-29 . Mashable . en . 2024-02-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240229021933/https://mashable.com/article/tumblr-transphobia-matt-mullenweg . live .
  21. Web site: 2024-02-24 . A message from a few of the trans staff at Tumblr & Automattic . 2024-02-29 . Tumblr . en-US . 2024-10-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20241001215150/https://staff.tumblr.com/post/743224389484625920/a-message-from-a-few-of-the-trans-staff-at-tumblr . live .
  22. WordPress & Automattic: Matt Mullenweg . . . 21 March 2022 . 29 September 2024 . 1 October 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20241001215148/https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297 . live .
  23. Calore . Michael . 13 March 2008 . Blog Fight! WordPress and Movable Type Square Off . 2024-10-02 . Wired . en-US . 1059-1028.
  24. Web site: Arrington . Michael . 2008-03-11 . Six Apart Takes Aim At Wordpress Users; Wordpress Pissed . 2024-10-02 . TechCrunch . en-US.
  25. Web site: Dash . Anil . Anil Dash . 10 March 2008 . A WordPress 2.5 Upgrade Guide . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080827191947/https://www.movabletype.com/blog/2008/03/a-wordpress-25-upgrade-guide.html . 27 August 2008 . Movable Type.
  26. Web site: Weber . Harrison . 23 January 2013 . WordPress.org Bans Themeforest Members from WordCamp . 29 September 2024 . . en . 30 March 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230330020617/https://thenextweb.com/news/wordpress-org-bans-themeforest-authors-from-participating-in-official-wordcamp-gatherings . live .
  27. Web site: Gallagher . Sean . 1 November 2016 . Wix gets caught "stealing" GPL code from WordPress . 29 September 2024 . Ars Technica . en-us . 30 June 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240630121419/https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2016/11/wordpress-and-wix-trade-shots-over-alleged-theft-of-open-source-code/ . live .
  28. Web site: Yeung . Ken . 28 October 2016 . WordPress creator Matt Mullenweg slams Wix: 'Your app editor is built with stolen code' . 29 September 2024 . VentureBeat . en-US . 26 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230526045320/https://venturebeat.com/mobile/wordpress-creator-matt-mullenweg-slams-wix-your-app-editor-is-built-with-stolen-code/ . live .
  29. Web site: Audrey Capital . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201212045821/https://audrey.co/ . December 12, 2020 . 30 September 2024 . Audrey.co.
  30. Web site: WordPress Founder Matt Mullenweg Joins the GitLab Board as Company Momentum Hits an All-Time High . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20190830041448/https://about.gitlab.com/press/releases/2017-10-09-gitlab-raises-c-round.html . 2019-08-30 . August 29, 2019 . GitLab, Inc..
  31. Web site: 2015-11-25 . The WordPress Foundation . 2024-09-30 . WordPress Book . en-US . 2024-09-27 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240927143751/https://wordpress.org/book/2015/11/the-wordpress-foundation/ . live .
  32. Web site: 2024-06-20 . EP484 – Whose WordPress is it anyway? – WPwatercooler . 2024-09-30 . en-US . 2024-09-27 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240927053609/https://www.wpwatercooler.com/wpwatercooler/ep484-whose-wordpress-is-it-anyway/ . live .
  33. Web site: 2023-05-25 . Audrey Scholars . 2024-09-30 . Audrey Capital . en-US . 2024-10-01 . https://web.archive.org/web/20241001215145/https://audrey.co/scholars/ . live .

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