{"id":224542,"date":"2026-04-07T09:08:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T09:08:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/?p=224542"},"modified":"2026-04-06T07:45:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T07:45:09","slug":"dev-the-dark-mode-rises","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/dev-the-dark-mode-rises\/","title":{"rendered":"DEV: The Dark Mode Rises"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Welcome to DEV, your fortnightly roundup of WordPress news, clever builds, and the humans (for now) behind it all.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Things are changing fast. We\u2019re here to try to keep up\u2026 and help you stay in the loop.<\/p>\n<p>Stick around to the end to see the cutest unboxing video of all time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>In today\u2019s edition:<\/strong><\/p>\n<li>WordPress hands AI the keys. (Don\u2019t worry, it asked first.)<\/li>\n<li>Meanwhile in Opposite Land, EmDash is the one obsessed with AI.<\/li>\n<li>How we made our Premium Plan even more of a handy toolkit for busy devs.<\/li>\n<h2>Hot Off The Presses: What\u2019s New?<\/h2>\n<div class=\"image-grid cgrid-row\">\n<div class=\"cgrid-col cgrid-col-span-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/ai-jobs-procrastination-tweet2.png\" alt=\"Tweet from @netcapgirl: &quot;ai is coming for your jobs&quot; i&#039;d like to see ai procrastinate all day before a 2pm meeting\" width=\"599\" height=\"302\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-224545\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Is it just me, or is the absolute worst thing for your productivity\u2026 having a 2pm meeting?<\/p>\n<p>Your brain refuses to start anything meaningful before it. You\u2019re not quite resting, not quite working, just\u2026 buffering.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re in procrastination mode right now, we\u2019ve got you. Scroll on for the latest WordPress updates to fill the void until motivation (hopefully) kicks in.<\/p>\n<h2>WordPress Now Lets AI Run Your Site (Kinda)<\/h2>\n<p>WordPress has shifted from letting AI <em>read<\/em> your site\u2026 to letting it actually <em>do things<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The change is powered by Model Context Protocol (MCP), which allows AI tools to plug directly into your site and perform 19 new <a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.com\/blog\/2026\/03\/20\/ai-agent-manage-content\/\" target=\"_blank\">types of tasks<\/a>, including drafting and publishing posts, building pages, managing and replying to comments, and creating, renaming, and restructuring categories and tags.<\/p>\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/wordpress-com-mcp-write-capabilities-ai-agent\" target=\"_blank\">Ana-Maria Stanciuc described<\/a>, it\u2019s like AI agents used to have a \u201cwindow\u201d into your site, and now they have a \u201cdoor.\u201d Knock knock. Who\u2019s there? Not a human anymore!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Don\u2019t worry, you\u2019re still in control:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The AI agent checks with you before publishing, creating, updating, or deleting anything<\/li>\n<li>New posts default to drafts, so you can catch any wild hallucinations before they go live<\/li>\n<li>Even \u201cdelete\u201d isn\u2019t forever, you can restore content within 30 days<\/li>\n<li>It won\u2019t randomly go rogue and turn your company website into a hobbit fanfic blog (without your approval)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For the average WordPress wrangler juggling dozens of client sites and a half-written blog post from 2022\u2026 this could actually help. You can spin up draft posts in seconds, clean up formatting and categorization messes, organize content you were definitely going to sort \u201clater,\u201d and maybe even keep client blogs alive without chasing them for content (again).<\/p>\n<p>But of course, there\u2019s a potential dark side: AI content flooding the web, SEO turning into even more of a battlefield, and readers wondering if a human wrote <em>anything<\/em> on your site.<\/p>\n<p>Turning your site into a \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tomsguide.com\/ai\/the-internet-is-dying-researchers-uncovered-200-fake-ai-websites-youve-likely-visited\" target=\"_blank\">slop factory<\/a>\u201d still isn\u2019t a strategy. Low-value content is low-value, even if humans are no longer required to produce it.<\/p>\n<p>Have you experimented with giving an AI agent the keys to your WordPress door? How\u2019s it going\u2026 and how much do you trust it? We\u2019d love to hear your take.<\/p>\n<h2>EmDash: A New \u201cSpiritual Successor\u201d Just Entered the Chat \ud83d\udc40<\/h2>\n<p>Cloudflare has just launched something called EmDash, which they are very casually calling a \u201cspiritual successor to WordPress.\u201d <em>Cool cool cool. No pressure<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>So what is it?<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A CMS built from scratch<\/li>\n<li>Runs on Cloudflare\u2019s serverless platform<\/li>\n<li>Written entirely in TypeScript<\/li>\n<li>Treats plugins like sandboxed apps with permissions<\/li>\n<li>And is very, <em>very<\/em> into AI<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>In other words: WordPress\u2026 but if it grew up in 2026 instead of 2003.<\/p>\n<p>The big pitch? Plugins can\u2019t mess with each other or core. Which, considering most WordPress vulnerabilities come from dodgy plugins, makes sense.<\/p>\n<p>Unsurprisingly, the April 1st announcement got everyone talking. (Including a <a href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/emdash-cms\/emdash\/issues\/19\" target=\"_blank\">GitHub issue<\/a> asking if it was literally an April Fools joke.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>So\u2026 what are people saying?<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/ma.tt\/2026\/04\/emdash-feedback\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Big M himself<\/a>, Matt Mullenweg, insists that EmDash isn\u2019t \u201cspiritually tied to WordPress at all\u201d and warns against claiming to \u201cbe our spiritual successor without understanding our spirit.\u201d<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/kraut.press\/2026\/emdash-cms-shows-gutenberg-limits\/\" target=\"_blank\">Hendrik Luehrsen<\/a> says it exposes Gutenberg\u2019s biggest weakness: a slick interface sitting on top of a system that was never redesigned for how content actually works today.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.briancoords.com\/emdash-first-thoughts-and-takeaways-for-wordpress\/\" target=\"_blank\">Brian Coords<\/a> calls it a genuinely smart rethink of CMS architecture\u2026 just not one that\u2019s ready to compete with WordPress\u2019s real-world ecosystem anytime soon.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/medium.com\/@olivierdo\/the-cms-that-calls-itself-a-pause-f9dc787b8ee7\" target=\"_blank\">Olivier Dobberkau<\/a> goes full philosophical, calling the admin panel a fa\u00e7ade and arguing the real product is an API for AI agents, not humans\u2026 meaning you might not be the main user of your own CMS for much longer.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>EmDash is interesting not because it\u2019s going to dethrone WordPress tomorrow, but because it says a lot about where the web is going.<\/p>\n<p>What do you think? Is EmDash a full stop for WordPress, or just a pause?<\/p>\n<h2>Our Premium Plan Just Got a Whole Lot More Premium<\/h2>\n<p>In news a little closer to home\u2026 we\u2019ve been busy.<\/p>\n<p>As in \u201cturning our Premium Plan into a full digital agency starter pack\u201d busy.<\/p>\n<p>We recently rolled out a <strong>bunch<\/strong> of new upgrades to the Premium Plan, built around what you actually need day-to-day to build cool stuff for your clients.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the new features packed into the Premium Plan include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Front-of-the-queue VIP support:<\/strong> Skip the line, fix things faster.<\/li>\n<li><strong>$900 in free credits:<\/strong> For hosting, on-demand dev, and proactive monitoring. \ud83e\udd11<\/li>\n<li><strong>Sweet discounts:<\/strong> Half price hosting and Pro Email = bigger margins.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Zero-fee billing:<\/strong> A feature that could save you a ton over time if you&#8217;re billing multiple clients monthly.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>One of our members, Flavio, wrote:<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cThank you VERY much to the WPMU DEV team for listening, improving the Premium plan, and making it far more \u201creseller\u2011friendly.\u201d This update shows real commitment to supporting agencies like ours.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Cheers, Flavio! You know we\u2019ve always got your back. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udc49 <a href=\"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/a-whole-lot-more-premium\/\" target=\"_blank\">Read the full scoop on what\u2019s new.<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Mind Bloggling Facts &#038; Stats<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>On April 1st, SolidWP\u2019s WordPress Vulnerability Report revealed 225 new vulnerabilities that had emerged in the WordPress ecosystem, including 91 that still remain unpatched. Don\u2019t be a fool. Keep your site safe! (<a href=\"https:\/\/solidwp.com\/blog\/wordpress-vulnerability-report-april-1-2026\" target=\"_blank\">Source<\/a>)<\/li>\n<li>WordPress can no longer boast that it powers 43% of the web. The number has dropped to 42.4%. It\u2019s the first time that figure has dropped below 43% since 2022. The interesting part? The category of sites being built without <em>any<\/em> content management system (aka. AI-produced sites) has increased for the first time in a decade. (<a href=\"https:\/\/w3techs.com\/technologies\/history_overview\/content_management\/all\/y\" target=\"_blank\">Source<\/a>)<\/li>\n<li>The robots aren\u2019t just building the sites, they\u2019re also visiting them. Human Security\u2019s <strong>State of AI Traffic &amp; Cyberthreat Benchmark Report<\/strong> revealed that non-human internet traffic is growing EIGHT TIMES faster than human traffic. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.humansecurity.com\/learn\/resources\/2026-state-of-ai-traffic-cyberthreat-benchmarks\/\" target=\"_blank\">Source<\/a>)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Blogs &#038; Resources You Shouldn\u2019t Miss<\/h2>\n<p>Bryce Culp calls WordPress 7.0 a <a href=\"https:\/\/webdevstudios.com\/2026\/04\/03\/wordpress-7-0-is-coming-how-to-prepare-your-enterprise-site-for-the-ai-era\/\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cfoundational leap forward<\/a>\u201d and explains how to prepare your site for the impending AI era.<\/p>\n<p>Built your side-hustle pre-AI? A <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hostinger.com\/blog\/us-side-business-survey\" target=\"_blank\">Hostinger survey<\/a> says you\u2019re more likely to still be doing things the \u201cold-fashioned way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Elementor has launched their own agentic AI for WordPress. Describe what you want and <a href=\"https:\/\/elementor.com\/blog\/introducing-angie-agentic-ai-for-wordpress\/\" target=\"_blank\">Angie will build it for you<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Nick Hamze has been chatting with <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/famousish\/status\/2029200266327654886\" target=\"_blank\">Dewey<\/a>, his WordPress version of the ever-helpful Clippy.<\/p>\n<p>Jason Coleman doesn\u2019t do anything without <a href=\"https:\/\/therealjasoncoleman.com\/2026\/03\/21\/i-dont-do-anything-without-flint-anymore\/\" target=\"_blank\">Flint, his 24\/7 AI assistant<\/a> who lives on an old gaming PC in his basement.<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/seriouslybud.com\/episode\/eve-and-adam\/\" target=\"_blank\">100th episode of <em>Seriously, BUD?<\/a><\/em> features AI hosts having a surprisingly human chat about the folks behind WordPress.<\/p>\n<p>WP Plugin Insights uses AI to scan your plugins for trouble. Javier Casares and Mark Heijnen <a href=\"https:\/\/openchannels.fm\/wp-plugin-insight\/\" target=\"_blank\">explain how<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>Coffee Break Distractions<\/h2>\n<p>In contrast to all of the stuff above, here\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DVAtxcakurJ\" target=\"_blank\">something whimsical and amazing built in the real world, no AI required.<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Dinosaurs\/comments\/1s2t0xk\/question_for_dinosaur_scientists_obviously_large\/\" target=\"_blank\">A fascinating thread<\/a> about a dinosaur question you probably never thought to ask.<\/p>\n<p>This <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/seniordogs\/comments\/1rrdl2f\/senior_dog_14_years_old_finished_dead_last_in_the\/\" target=\"_blank\">senior dog came last in the race<\/a>, but he\u2019s won first place in our hearts. \ud83e\udd79<\/p>\n<p>Our brains are biological computers. <a href=\"https:\/\/programmerhumor.io\/programming-memes\/but-can-it-run-crysis\/\" target=\"_blank\">So, can they run DOOM?<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Maybe not, but you can render Doom in 3D with just CSS. <a href=\"https:\/\/nielsleenheer.com\/articles\/2026\/css-is-doomed-rendering-doom-in-3d-with-css\/\" target=\"_blank\">Niels Leenheer made it happen<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Is it worth tattooing \u201cPatchstack\u201d on your ankle to get stock options in the company? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/feed\/update\/urn:li:activity:7443184378303741952\/\" target=\"_blank\">Soeren von Varchim thought so!<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DWpD3bAE0fN\/\" target=\"_blank\">The goodest of good dogs<\/a>. (Is someone chopping onions?!)<\/p>\n<p>XKCD: Came for the <a href=\"https:\/\/xkcd.com\/3227\/\" target=\"_blank\">\u201cDark Mode\u201d joke<\/a>, stuck around for the drop down menu below it. (My fave is \u201cAirplane Mode\u201d)<\/p>\n<p><strong>And finally\u2026 <\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/Awww\/comments\/1rtf23r\/baby_duck_reunited_with_siblings_after_being\/\" target=\"_blank\">Duck in a box<\/a>.<strong> \ud83e\udd86<\/strong>\ud83e\udd79<\/p>\n<p><strong>Love this mix of nerdery and nonsense? Share it with your fave human. <\/strong>\ud83d\udc97<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to DEV, your fortnightly roundup of WordPress news, clever builds, and the humans (for now) behind it all. Things are changing fast. We\u2019re here to try to keep up\u2026 and help you stay in the loop. Stick around to the end to see the cutest unboxing video of all time. In today\u2019s edition: WordPress [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1204260,"featured_media":223007,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"blog_reading_time":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_tutorials_categories":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11265],"tags":[],"tutorials_categories":[],"class_list":["post-224542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dev"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224542","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1204260"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=224542"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224542\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":224551,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224542\/revisions\/224551"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/223007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224542"},{"taxonomy":"tutorials_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpmudev.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tutorials_categories?post=224542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}