WordPress community is buzzing with conversations of a shift with StellarWP layoffs and the Kadence founder leaving. Also, Matt is on a mission to fix the Internet Archive at the WordPress level. Plus product updates for WPForms, SureForms, Groundhogg, FooGallery, LiveCanvas, Code Snippets, and more.
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What’s Buzzing in WordPress 💖
- Internet Archive + WP Fixer… Matt Mullenweg shared about the free the Internet Archive Wayback Machine Link Fixer WordPress plugin to combat link rot. So, when a linked page is no longer there, this plugin redirects to a reliable archived version. It also does archiving of own posts every time they’re updated, creating a consistent backup of your content’s history.
- Patchstack + Web Hosts… Oliver Sild shared (LinkedIn), ‘Web hosts can now integrate Patchstack fully into their hosting panels without the need to configure servers or do any custom development’. Patchstack’s Web Host integration now offers a true plug and play vulnerability detection and mitigation that scales and has the highest reported upsell conversions.
- InstaWP + Downloadable Backups… the team at InstaWP shared about (Links X) the new downloadable automated backups inside your dashboard in the 3.11.0v update. InstaWP users can access daily and monthly automated backups (based on plan tier, 30 days retention period). Also, can instantly create websites from backups.
- Revenue from Popups… ‘how much money your popups and campaigns really bring in?’ The Revenue Attribution feature in FireBox helps you track two types of revenue: View through revenue and conversion through revenue – enabling you to see exactly how much revenue your popups generate.
New Free Plugins: Interactions & PodLoom
Interactions + Free Version… Benjamin Intal has launched the free version of WP Interactions, now called the Interactions plugin in the repo. The free version is feature rich with an interaction library of pre-built animations and effects. Further, you can also build your own custom effects using Interaction Builder.
Transistor + WordPress… Matt Medeiros over at The WP Minute has released a free PodLoom plugin for Transistor .fm and WordPress users. This allows you to embed podcast episodes hosted on the Transistor fm service on your WordPress website within the Block Editor.
Native Integrations: SureForms & WPForms
Native Integrations in SureForms… native integrations let different tools talk to each other automatically, without any third-party help. SureForms has introduced 17+ native integrations, enabling users to connect their forms directly to tools like Mailchimp, Brevo, FluentCRM, Airtable, Telegram, and more.
WPForms + Airtable… the team at WPForms has introduced native integration for Airtable, through the new WPForms Airtable addon. You can send form submissions to Airtable bases automatically with real-time sync (no delays) and field mapping under your control.
Extended WordPress Buzz 🔥
- Automatic Plugin Check… David Perez, from the Plugins Team (sponsored by Hostinger), shared that the Plugin Check plugin now automatically runs on every plugin update and generates a security report. He shared (LinkedIn), “This is part of our ongoing effort to make the plugin ecosystem more secure, transparent, and reliable for everyone”.
- Modular DS + Patchstack… Reyes Martínez Duque shared (LinkedIn) about the Modular DS partnership with Patchstack. This will bring advanced security right into the dashboard of Modular DS users, providing stronger website protection without the need of additional tools or complex setups.
- WordPress Core…. Akshaya Rane shared about the availability of WordPress 6.9 Beta 2 for testing. This release contains more than 33 Editor updates and fixes since the Beta 1 release, including 28 tickets for WordPress core. The final WordPress 6.9 is scheduled for December 2, 2025.
- Gutenberg Update… Héctor Prieto shared about the new Gutenberg 21.9v update featuring a Math block, which allows you to add complex LaTeX formulas natively in the editor, and the new Breadcrumbs block. This release also improves block drag and drop action within the editor.
- New AI-focused Event… Automattic is starting a new monthly (LinkedIn) AI-focused gathering, dev/ai/nyc. Registration is open for the first one scheduled for November 5, 2025, in New York. It will feature talks from John Borthwick (betaworks founder and CEO) and Matt Mullenweg (Automattic CEO and WordPress co-founder).
- Checkout Summit for Woo… Rodolfo Melogli is organizing an in-person Checkout Summit 2026 in Palermo, Italy, on April 23-24, 2026. This promises to be the first independent IRL conference for WooCommerce Makers. Tickets are available now.
Updates: Groundhogg, Missing from Cart, & Activity Log
Groundhogg + Frequency Limits… 4.2.6v has introduced Trigger Frequency Limit settings allowing you to control how many times a contact can enter or move through a Flow. Also, in addition to existing batch scheduling for broadcasts, you can now also add contacts to Flows in batches.
Missing From Cart… Dave Grey has added many new settings in the 1.1v update of Missing From Cart. Like notice type, choose between “Error” (block checkout) and “Info” (allows checkout). Also, setting to require complete bundle multiples (equal quantities across all categories) and the ability to enforce quantity limits per category.
WP Activity Log + PMP… 5.5.2v of WP Activity Log added support for Paid Memberships Pro, allowing you to keep a detailed record of key membership related changes made through the Paid Memberships Pro. Like creating, updating, or deleting membership levels, assigning or removing them from users. See Livestream video (YouTube) of the demo.
More Updates: FooGallery, Code Snippets, & LiveCanvas
FooGallery + Modern Galleries… v3 promises to be a significant update with a redesigned layout selector, which now appears above gallery settings, giving you a clearer preview of how each layout will display your images. Also, there is updated default gallery layouts, improved gallery controls, and enhanced filtering options.
Code Snippets + File Based Execution… 3.8.0v has introduced a new (optional) File Based Execution Mode, which allows you to run snippets directly from files instead of the database. Besides UI changes, there is also a new option to switch to the previous version of the plugin.
LiveCanvas + Blocks Library… 4.8v introduces a revamped Blocks Library with brand new Dynamic Blocks powered by ACF. It has also expanded the AI Assistant with Claude Sonnet 4.5 support for smarter code and content generation.
Quick Bits 👍
- Sridhar noticed (Links X) another/new SEO plugin, SEO Engine.
- New WooCommerce 10.3.4 release for performance updates.
- Bob Dunn’s 700 episodes milestone of 565 guests & 39 hosts.
- Google is hiring Staff Software Engineer for SiteKit WP Plugin.
- Beeper offering bounties upto $50K for open source bridges.
- Jake Spurlock at Automattic, launched Today RSS reader for iOS.
- Online Tool: SVG Ready helps convert SVG to CSS Data URI.
- Let’s Learn
- How to style accordions in WordPress 6.9, by Justin Tadlock.
- Build top-level menus & sub-menus, by Cheyne Klein, WP TV.
- WP on YouTube
- The Cyber Resilience Act, from WordPress Lens, Oliver Sild.
- Kevin Geary & Remkus de Vries, how to make fast websites.
- New video series by Ryan Welcher, New for WP Developers.
- People of WordPress
- Paolo Belcastro now Artistic Director, Domain Maison, Automattic.
- Maddy French join DigitalOcean as Sr. Content Marketing Manager.
Hosting Buzz: Hostinger, Rocket .net, & Bluehost
Hostinger Ranked… the team at Hostinger has achieved an impressive showing, The Financial Times ranked Hostinger the 2nd fastest growing company in Europe over the last decade (2014-2024), great going!
Rocket .net in Dubai… users of Rocket .net hosting now have an option to use the newly launched hosting data center in Dubai. Also, recently, the Toronto (Canada) location was added through Rocket .net’s partnership with hosting .com service.
VPS at Bluehost… Sandy Edwards from the Bluehost team shared (LinkedIn) about the launch of the new Self-Managed VPS Hosting option at Bluehost. It is built for developers who want total control and with no pre-installed software, so you can build, customize, and optimize your environment exactly how you want it.
Buzzing: StellarWP Layoffs & Kadence Founder
Layoff at StellarWP… David Johnson shared about (LinkedIn) the number of layoffs at StellarWP, “Today, I am deeply saddened by the loss of a number of incredible colleagues at StellarWP / Liquid Web”. StellarWP runs many popular WordPress brands like Kadence, The Events Calendar, LearnDash, SolidWP, and more.
kadence Founder Leaves… Saylor Holder shared in the KadenceWP Facebook Group (see comments there), “After 12 years of dedication to Kadence and its customers, Ben (Benjamin Ritner) has moved on to his next adventure. His vision and craftsmanship shaped Kadence into the product so many people rely on today, and we’re deeply grateful for that legacy”.
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