Issue #230 | July 30, 2025 | Reading time: 15 mins
Hello!
This week on The WP Week Newsletter, we cover the WordPress 6.9 roadmap, an update on the next stages of Admin Design, a new Test Contributor Team initiative, a new proposal by the Hosting Team, new projects, and more.
Don’t forget to subscribe and listen to the podcast version of this newsletter, where you can hear more details and discussions about these topics and more.
See you next week!
Team WP-CONTENT.CO
🙌 This weekly newsletter is kindly sponsored by Kinsta, 20i and WP Job Openings
🗣️TALK OF THE TOWN
Matias outlined the structure of the new WordPress admin system, which is built from three key parts: Materials (UI layers like Canvas, Stage, Inspector, and Overlays), Concepts (reusable components like navigation, forms, editors, and widgets), and Screens (modular layouts combining materials and concepts).
📰 WORDPRESS & AROUND
All the updates around WordPress and its closely related technologies
The roadmap for the second major release of the year has been published, featuring improvements to the Site Editor, enhancements to content creation, the introduction of a new Abilities API, and more.
- WordPress Test Team launches contributor group to improve core quality: In an effort to raise the overall quality of WordPress Core contributions and address long-standing challenges in the contributor workflow, the Test team has officially introduced a new initiative, the Test Contributors Group.
- Proposal: Responsible AI workflow for creating new documentation for WordPress 6.9: Jenni McKinnon outlines a plan to responsibly integrate AI into drafting new end-user documentation for WordPress 6.9. The AI will assist only in the initial drafting phase, while human contributors retain full control over fact-checking, editing, and publishing.
- Hosting Team’s proposal for new team description: Amy Kamala has proposed a new, clearer description for the WordPress Hosting Team to better reflect its current role and activities. The current descriptions are outdated and vague. The new draft highlights the team’s work in industry collaboration, distributed testing, and user education, acting as a bridge between web hosts and WordPress core teams.
- WooCommerce 10.0.4: Dot release: This release fixes a compatibility issue with the Gutenberg plugin.
- Account takeover vulnerability affecting over 400K installations patched in Post SMTP plugin: A critical account takeover vulnerability affecting over 400,000 WordPress sites was patched in version 3.3.0 of the Post SMTP plugin. The flaw allowed low-level users, like Subscribers, to access sensitive email logs and intercept password reset emails, potentially leading to full site takeovers.
- 10,000 WordPress sites affected by critical vulnerabilities in HT Contact Form WordPress plugin: Three critical, unauthenticated vulnerabilities were found in the HT Contact Form WordPress plugin (10,000+ installs), allowing attackers to upload, delete, or move files including wp-config.php, which can lead to full site takeover. All issues were patched in version 2.2.2. Users are urged to update immediately.
- Uncovering a stealthy WordPress backdoor in mu-plugins: The Sucuri team discovered a stealthy backdoor that was hidden in the mu-plugins folder of WordPress sites, using a malicious file (wp-index.php) that automatically runs and can’t be disabled via the admin panel.
- Google confirms CSS class names don’t influence SEO: CSS class names have no impact on SEO and aren’t read as content by Google. Oversized CSS files can slow pages down and hurt Core Web Vitals scores. Google recommends keeping CSS crawlable to ensure proper rendering and indexing.
- ChatGPT appears to use Google Search as a fallback: Experiments appear to confirm that ChatGPT may be using Google’s search results as a fallback when Bing doesn’t have a page indexed.
💵 INVESTMENTS, ACQUISITIONS & PARTNERSHIPS
- Ionut Neagu is open to WordPress plugin acquisition or partnership: He is looking for plugins generating $60K–$150K in annual revenue. Interested folks can DM him.
👥 COMMUNITY NEWS
Updates and News from the WordPress Community
Danny Sullivan, Google’s Search Liaison, will be the keynote speaker at WordCamp US 2025. A veteran in SEO and digital marketing, Danny is known for founding Search Engine Watch, Search Engine Land, and coining the term “Search Engine Marketing.”
- LoopConf 2025 announced its first four speakers: The event scheduled to take place on 25 September 2025 at the Bishopsgate Institute, revealed the first four speakers comprising of Ivelina Dimova (Senior Developer RAD team Awesome Motive), Rashmi Nagpal (Machine Learning, Patchstack), Ross Wintle (Software Developer, WP Engine) and Ryan McCue (Director of Product, Human Made/Altis).
- An Automattic Timeline: Automattic celebrated its 20th birthday on June 20, 2025 and now they have released a timeline that showcases its origin, founding years, first acquisitions, milestones, and so on.
- New milestone for FluentForms: The plugin now has over 600,000+ active installations.
- ACF 6.4.3 security release now available: This release contains several security fixes for ACF and ACF PRO, including additional HTML escaping for field group labels, post titles, and Select2 elements to prevent JS vulnerabilities in the WordPress admin.
- Gato AI Translations for Polylang v13.2 released: This release brings in two new features, Translate entity IDs in meta fields and OpenRouter Integration.
- ActivityPub receives new updates: WordPress.com has added three new features to enhance the ActivityPub experience: a guided onboarding to help users connect with the Fediverse, customization options for how blogs appear on platforms like Mastodon (including avatar, header, and bio), and a new followers list to track and engage with your Fediverse audience.
- All new Unleash the Wapuu Card Game: A new Wappu-based card game created by Marcus Burnette, and the preorder is now available.
🚀 NEW PROJECTS
- Introducing WP Trail Buddies: The initiative, launched by Michelle Frechette, pairs veteran WordCamp attendees with newcomers to help first-time participants feel welcome and supported at WordCamps.
- No-cache BFCache plugin: The plugin developed by Weston Ruter enables instant back/forward navigation via the browser’s bfcache.
- Content Area Block plugin: The plugin developed by Ian Svoboda allows allows users to add an additional block content area to a site-editor template and store the block output inside a meta field.
- CookieFirst plugin: A new cookie consent manager plugin with full integration support for WordPress Consent API.
- Olvy Cache Purger plugin: The plugin allows users to manages Nginx FastCGI cache for WordPress with global and automatic purging for posts, pages, and WooCommerce products/categories.
- Voice Feedback plugin: The plugin allows visitors to leave audio feedback on your WordPress site.
- BlaBlaBlocks Slider Block plugin: A plugin built specifically for the Block Editor, allowing you to create responsive sliders effortlessly.
- MailerPress plugin: A feature-loaded new email marketing plugin.
- All new PopupKit plugin: WPmet has launched PopupKit, a new popup builder plugin with a drag and drop builder, conversion tracking, popup triggers and so on.
🔖 INTERESTING READS & PODCASTS
More posts and podcasts from the WordPress Community you don’t want to miss
- Optimizing triage with AI starting points: Tammie Lister explores how the new Trac MCP Server can enhance WordPress triage using AI tools like Claude and ChatGPT. From Tammie Lister.
- “Step Inside: Woo Marketing” event recap: Woo’s recent event outlined its new marketing vision focused on platform growth, brand awareness, monetization, and community involvement. Executives shared insights on how Woo targets high-intent, long-cycle buyers with strategic demand generation, new thematic campaigns, and a revamped brand identity. From WooCommerce.
- In conversation with Zach Hendershot: In this episode, Zach Hendershot shares his journey from a tech-savvy kid in Dayton, Ohio, to co-founding Miruni a SaaS tool that uses AI to help agencies manage WordPress sites. From Seriously, Bud?
- Adam Silverstein explores transformative browser features impacting WordPress sites: Adam Silverstein (WordPress Core committer and Google engineer) shares how new browser features like Popover API, scroll animations, speculative loading, and native CSS carousels are transforming WordPress performance and UX. From WP Tavern Jukebox.
- Post Status Happiness Hour with Macus Burnette and Michelle Frechette: Host Michelle Frechette is interviewed by Macus Burnette to introduce “WP Trail Buddies,” Michelle’s initiative to help newcomers at large WordCamp events feel welcome and connected. From Post Status.
- Managing team growth and delegation in WordPress plugin businesses: In this episode, host Mark Westguard chats with Maarten Belmans of Studio Wombat to explore the ins and outs of running a WordPress plugin business. From OpenChannels.fm.
- Migrating legacy WordPress content to the block editor: A real-world case study: Elliot Richmond shares how he migrated a legacy WordPress site to the Block Editor by building a custom plugin to convert meta-stored widget content into dynamic block patterns. From Elliot Richmond.
- The ultimate guide to the European Accessibility Act for WordPress: Amber Hinds demystifies the EAA and provides practical guidance tailored for website owners, web developers, and WordPress plugin/theme developers. From Equalize Digital.
- Some WordPress creators always get the love: Imran Siddiq takes on the issue of lack of diversity in the WordPress ecosystem when it comes to promotions.
- Justin Ferriman on why he sold LearnDash: Despite LearnDash’s most profitable year, Justin Ferriman chose to sell the company in 2020 due to deep personal burnout and a loss of passion for WordPress and e-learning. He realized that without genuine enthusiasm, his creativity and drive suffered, turning once-enjoyable tasks into burdens.
- Implementing AI in open source without losing the human touch: Jonathan Desrosiers explores how AI can be thoughtfully integrated into open source without losing the human touch that makes communities like WordPress thrive. He suggests using AI to automate routine tasks, help onboard new contributors, and bridge language gaps while ensuring key interactions and decisions remain human-led. From Jonathan Desrosiers.
- Jamie Marsland’s not sure WordPress can be WordPress anymore: Jamie Marsland reflects on the slowing growth of WordPress as a traditional website builder and questions whether it can evolve into something greater. With AI-powered platforms like Loveable and Replit redefining how people build for the web, shifting from sites to full apps, he suggests WordPress needs to expand its mission.
- Build a WordPress plugin with AI: Why it takes more than Cursor: Matt Cromwell built the TLDRWP plugin using AI tools like Cursor and OpenAI, but emphasizes that experience, user feedback, and craftsmanship were essential to making it a great WordPress plugin. From Matt Cromwell.
- Amplifying diverse voices in WordPress: A conversation with Winstina Hughes, founder of Support Inclusion in Tech (SiNC): Winstina Hughes, founder of Support Inclusion in Tech (SiNC), discusses her mission to increase diverse representation at WordPress events. SiNC funds speaker travel through grants, Open Collective donations, and partnerships, making it easier for underrepresented voices to participate. From WordCamp Canada.
- How to pitch WordPress to skeptical CTOs: This article walks through how to make a compelling case for WordPress with technical leadership. You learn how to anticipate and counter common objections, present real-world use cases, and frame your pitch around outcomes that resonate with CTOs. From Kinsta.
🛠 GUIDE ZONE – HOWTO’S and MORE
Handpicked fresh guides from WordPress circle
- Using the WordPress Group block: From WordPress.com
- Extracting Data from WordPress.org with Meltano: From Mahangu Weerasinghe
📆 SAVE THE DATES
Do not miss a WordPress event ever again
- WordCamp US on August 26-29, 2025: The call for organizers and sponsor applications is now open.
- LoopConf 2025 on September 25: The registration is now open.
- SomeConf 2025: The event is in the early planning stages. The call for sponsors and speakers is now live.
- WP Suomi 2025 on October 10: The call for speakers is now open.
- WordCamp Canada on October 16-17 2025: The call for sponsors is now open. The first round of the speaker list has been published.
- WordCamp Asia 2026: It is tentatively planned for early February 2026 and the call for organizers is now open.
- WordCamp Europe 2026 on June 4-6: The call for organizers is now open.
🎁 WORDPRESS DEALS OF THE WEEK
Again, these are the best deals of the week, handpicked by yours!
EXCLUSIVE DEALS
- 4 Months free offer on hosting plans of WP Engine (Coupon Code- FREEDOMTOCREATE)
- 10% off on monthly & annual plans at SureTriggers (Coupon Code- WPCONTENT10)
- 15% off yearly plans at Videvo (Coupon Code – WPV15)
MORE DEALS
- Up to 50% off on BookingPress plugin
- 50% off 3 months on Liquid Web’s Bare Metal server hosting
- 20% off for Constellation plugin
- 20% off for the lifetime plan for the Modern Cart for WooCommerce plugin.
This weekly newsletter is kindly sponsored by awesome WordPress Companies 🦸♂️🙌
Last but not least, updates from WP-CONTENT.CO 👇
In an effort to raise the overall quality of WordPress Core contributions and address long-standing challenges in the…
The WordPress Core Test Team has published its “First Quality Analysis Report”, following six months of work within…
WP Includes has announced that applications are now open for the Autumn 2025 cohort of its Women in…
The WordPress Plugin Review Team has officially adopted a new name, the Plugins Team, signaling a shift in…
Team WP-CONTENT.CO
Issue #230 | July 30, 2025 | Reading time: 15 mins
This weekly newsletter is kindly sponsored by Kinsta, 20i and WP Job Openings
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