Steve’s Blog

I joined Nathan Wrigley and the WP Builds panel for episode 375 of This Week in WordPress, titled “It’s All Up and Down,” recorded on June 9th, 2026. The conversation ranged across recent WordPress ecosystem news with a strong focus on the rapidly evolving intersection of AI and security — including new challenges for tools like Wordfence and Patchstack as AI-generated vulnerabilities and “AI slop” continue to grow as a threat vector.

I joined Nathan Wrigley and the panel on WP Builds for episode 373 of This Week in WordPress. We covered the latest WordPress news and discussed what’s happening in the community this week, including updates around WordPress 7.0 and the growing role of AI in the block editor.

I was a guest on the Community + Code podcast, hosted by Chris Reynold. This ia show that explores the stories behind people who build in open source. In episode 23, I shared how I got started — from teaching in rural Georgia to building websites on the side, and eventually finding my way into the WordPress plugin world. It was a fun conversation about the winding road that leads people into open source.

I was back on This Week in WordPress with Nathan Wrigley and the WP Builds panel for episode 368, subtitled “Never Arrive in Time.” We discussed the week’s WordPress news including new features in WordPress 7.0, AI experiment updates in the block editor, and a critical phishing vulnerability patched in WooCommerce.

I joined Eric Karkovack on the WP Minute+ podcast to talk about publishing workflows in WordPress. As founder of Ramble Ventures, I shared my journey through open source, the evolution of WordPress as a publishing platform, and how PublishPress has grown to help content teams work better. We also got into the role of AI in development and customer support, and where I see things heading next.

I joined Nathan Wrigley, Michelle Frechette, and Marcus Burnette for episode 357 of This Week in WordPress on WP Builds, nicknamed “Eat the Banana.” We covered the release of WordPress 6.9 RC3, the return of WordPress to three major releases in 2026, and a wide-ranging discussion on AI in WordPress core — including the debut of the experimental AI Experiments plugin.

I sat down with Gautam Khorana of Seahawk Media for episode 68 of the WP Legends podcast. We talked about the story behind PublishPress — how it grew out of my background in teaching open-source technologies — and the suite of publishing tools we’ve built to help WordPress teams manage content, editorial workflows, and author permissions. A great conversation about building products on WordPress for the long term.

I was on episode 352 of This Week in WordPress with Nathan Wrigley and the WP Builds panel, subtitled “Fully Embrace the Wapuu.” We discussed the latest WordPress news, upcoming WordCamp events, and the continuing evolution of the block editor.

I joined Nathan Wrigley and Michelle Frechette for episode 337 of This Week in WordPress, titled “AI All the Way Down.” The conversation focused heavily on AI — from its growing role in the WordPress ecosystem to a broader discussion about how AI tools are reshaping creative industries.

I appeared on episode 331 of This Week in WordPress with Nathan Wrigley and the WP Builds crew, titled “Woof.” We discussed WordPress 6.8 — the only major release planned for 2025 — along with speculative loading for better page performance and the upcoming Page Builder Summit.

I joined Mark Westguard on the Open Makers podcast (Open Channels FM) to talk about building a suite of WordPress plugins under the PublishPress umbrella. We covered the challenges of maintaining multiple plugins, the business decisions behind acquiring and growing products, and the wins that come from serving a dedicated community of WordPress publishers. If you’re interested in the behind-the-scenes of running a WordPress plugin business, this is a good listen.

Listen to the full episode at Open Channels FM.