Automattic Layoffs Underway as Insiders Brace for Months of Cuts

By Grace Kim

Automattic has begun laying off staff, and insiders say the cuts — already hitting communications, social, WordPress.com and its VIP enterprise business — will stretch over the months ahead.

The company's About page still lists 1,397 employees. But people inside the WordPress.com parent tell TechCrunch the plan is to spread the layoffs out, aiming to improve Automattic's Q4 revenue figures before a debt renegotiation scheduled for June.

What triggered the latest turmoil?

The layoffs land on a team still reeling from September, when the board tried and failed to oust CEO Matt Mullenweg. The fallout was swift:

• A complete turnover of the board
• The departure of the CFO
• The exit of the interim CFO
• The loss of the Chief Legal Officer

Interim CFO Jeremy Klaperman left earlier this month, TechCrunch reported, only weeks after the board shakeup. Mullenweg posted on X suggesting Klaperman may have been "offended" by the company's decision to seek external candidates for the role. Internally, though, Mullenweg had asked Klaperman to reconsider leaving, according to what TechCrunch heard.

Who has been cut so far?

Over at least the past week, the cuts have touched the communications team, the social team, WordPress.com and the VIP enterprise business. Throughout this month, TechCrunch has heard from multiple sources that marketing and product staff at WordPress.com have also been let go.

The most visible departure so far: Director of Communications Megan Fox, who posted about leaving on LinkedIn last week. She called it an "unexpected end" and said her role had been "eliminated."

That's a company spokeswoman gone and no replacement announced — while the company is actively making news.

What did Mullenweg say about the layoffs?

Reached for comment last week, Mullenweg said the terminations were not above normal numbers. Asked on Wednesday about the growing total, he said he was "mostly focused on PHP" — referring to the PHP security issue hitting the internet, which he posted about on X and said was taking priority.

A security emergency is a fair excuse for a busy CEO. It doesn't answer why the cuts keep widening.

What happened in the internal Slack?

At one point, Mullenweg shared personal information about one of the recently departed executives in the company's internal Slack, according to screenshots viewed by TechCrunch.

The post concerned a health matter affecting the executive's spouse. Mullenweg claimed the company was not providing the person with much-needed COBRA insurance, and said the executive was threatening to sue over it. He also disclosed that his own fiancée had been affected by the same health condition.

Some employees told TechCrunch they were shocked the CEO would share something so private in that forum.

A CEO airing a colleague's family health details in an all-hands channel is the kind of thing that accelerates exits.

Why does June matter?

The timeline is the story. Insiders say Automattic wants stronger Q4 revenue figures before renegotiating its debt in June. Spreading layoffs over months, rather than one clean cut, suggests management is managing optics quarter by quarter.

For a company whose leadership bench lost its CFO, interim CFO and Chief Legal Officer within weeks, the June renegotiation is the deadline that explains everything else.