Matt Mullenweg Facts

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Matt Mullenweg Facts – #50 Facts

Matt Mullenweg Facts - Biography

Matt Mullenweg Facts – Biography

Matt Mullenweg Early Years


1) Born 1984

Matthew Charles, also known as Matt Mullenweg, is born on 11 January 1984 and lives in San Francisco, California.

He is known as one of the youngest, talented and most successful entrepreneurs.

He is a social media entrepreneur, a web programmer and a musician.


2) High School

He studies visual and performing arts in high school.

In his school days, he excels at playing saxophone.

Matt does his majors in Political Science from the University of Houston.

In 2004, he leaves his university to take up a job at CNET Networks and moves from Houston to San Francisco.


3) Family Matt Mullenweg

Matt’s father, Chuck Mullenweg is a computer scientist from Houston Texas who now lives with his stay-at-home wife, Kathleen Mullenweg.

Matt Mullenweg has an older sister named Charleen Anne Mullenweg.

As a kid, when his parents would be away, Matt would rearrange all of the house furniture.


4) Houston Area League

Matt’s father, Chuck Mullenweg, often takes him to the Houston Area League of PC User to meet and listen to the speakers.

Later the organization members and nonmembers drop off their old computers, which the organization and often Mullenweg himself, fixes for them free of charge.


WordPress & Matt Mullenweg


5) WordPress

In January 2003, the progress of B2 came to a halt so he declares on his blog that he will soon launch a new branch of software, which will be up to date with web standards.

From the B2 code base, he along with Mike Little commences WordPress.

Soon Michel Valdrighi, the originator of B2 joins Matt.


6) Change in Prices of WordPress

During May 2004, the competitor of WordPress changes its prices; this radical change in the competitor’s pricing results in the loss of thousands of users of WordPress.

At this leaning moment of WordPress, Matt looks for other solutions.


7) Growth of WordPress

Matt Mullenweg is only 19 years old when he creates WordPress.

By the young age of 26, Matt Mullenweg has a net worth of $40 million according to celebrity networth.

His net worth is estimated by some websites to be as high as $200 million.

This is the era when WordPress is named the best CMS (content management system) on the internet.


8) WordPress 1.5

In February 2005, Matt and the WordPress team issues WordPress 1.5 ‘Strayhom’.

WordPress 1.5 ‘Strayhom’ is a complete success and is downloaded for more than 900,000 times.

New features, different theme styles, new and innovative face, end and back are also added to this release of WordPress.


9) More about WordPress

He is best known for the development of web software ‘WordPress’, which is free of cost and open source web-based software.

The WordPress Foundation now handles this software.

WordPress is the web software, which leads the web by 20% and more.

Mullenweg provides free access to blogs and other service on WordPress.com.


10) Most of the Employees at WordPress Work from Home

In 2013, it is reported that at least 130 out of 150 employees of WordPress work from home, far away from the company’s San Francisco office.

He says employees save time from commutes and are able to spend more time with their families.

This is in contrast to Marissa Mayer’s recent announcement to ban Yahoo employees to work from home.


11) WordPress Employees

Like many other young entrepreneurial companies, 87 percent of Matt Mullenweg’s WordPress work from home.

All of the 87%, that is exactly 130 employees, who work from home for WordPress, are spread around the world in 26 countries.


12) WordPress Aligns People with Something they Believe In

In an interview with Soap Box, Matt Mullenweg says that people like to use WordPress not because it is simply software but because WordPress “aligns with something they believe in”.

He says customizations have given freedom to the user and that is what programming based companies should focus on.


Other Work by Matt Mullenweg


13) Launches Automattic

At the end of 2005, he ceases his job at CNET Networks.

Although he has done majors in Political Sciences but he does remarkable work in the field of computer sciences.

After leaving CNET, he launches Automattic.

Automattic is the company that founded WordPress.com, Akismet, VaultPress, Gravatar, IntenseDebate etc.


14) Gravatar Service

WordPress is amongst the 30 most active sites in the world with thousands of bloggers and people commenting and making additional posts.

In 2007, Matt launches Gravatar service.


15) Akismet

He creates Akismet with the consensus of everyone and its basic purpose is to stop comments and trackback spam.

Automattic launchesWordPress.com with employing people of high caliber such as lead developer Ryan Boren and Donncha O Caoimh, the MU creator of WordPress.


16) Active Speaker at Several Conferences

This American entrepreneur is an active speaker at many conferences and events including Global Word Camp events, Canada’s Northern Voice, Greek Blogger Camp, Blog World Expo Web, Yahoo Tech Dev Talk and many more.

He shows his eloquent and effective speaking skills at all these events.


17) National Fed Challenge

Mullenweg participates in National Fed Challenge and from that time, he starts designing codes.

After participating in National Fed Challenge, he starts using the B2 Cafelog to accompany the photos he took on his trip to Washington D.C.

He makes valuable contributions including clearer permalinks and Typographic entities.


18) Global Multimedia Protocols Group

In March 2004, he becomes the co-founder of Global Multimedia Protocols Group along with Tantek Celik and Eric Meyer.

Matt is also among the first person to write micro formats in collaboration with Global Multimedia Protocols Group.

Matt’s association with Global Multimedia Protocols Group and creation of Micro formats is a very vital part of his career.


19) Ping-O-Matic

Matt launches Ping-O-Matic with his colleague from WordPress, Dougal Campbell in April 2004.

Ping-O-Matic is an uprising blog search engine like the blog updates Technorati.

It covers more than a million pings per day.


Success of WordPress


20) Viewership of WordPress Exceeds that of Google’s Blogger

He receives the biggest news of his career in January 2009.

San Francisco Business Times reports that WordPress viewership is accelerating faster than Google’s blogger.

This becomes important news in the community of internet.

Mullenweg ranks in the Vanity Fair’s Next Establishment honorary list of upcoming talents in the fields of policy, tech, business and media in October 2011.

Matt’s WordPress grew by 14.7% on the ranking of the top million websites in the world in the year 2011.


21) WordPress Receives Awards

WordPress receives the award for the Best Open Source CMS Award at the 2009 Open Source CMS Awards, amongst 12,000 other nominations.

This changes people’s perspective of WordPress, they start taking WordPress as more than just blog software.

WordPress is now recognized as a full featured CMS. .

WordPress takes part in the SOPA Internet Black out day in January 2012.


22) WordPress Hosts 60 Million Websites

Today WordPress hosts 60 million websites (that is one of every six websites on the internet according to Forbes.com) and it has the honor of ruling the web.

Despite its success, Forbes Magazine argues in the September 2012 issue, as to why Mullenweg is not a billionaire yet.

They say it is because only 1% of WordPress users are paying customers, rest of them host websites for free.


23) Strict Policy

Mullenweg has a strict policy to keep the website open-source giving more customization to its users.

Such perks like domain ownership and extra plugins, gets WordPress 100,000 users every day.


24) Revenue Generation Via WordPress

You may ask how Matt Mullenweg generates the revenue for WordPress.

First, WordPress VIP gives extra benefits to users that are willing to pay.

Secondly, 20% of revenue comes from WordPress VIP while the rest of it is earned through advertising.


25) WordPress Creates Several Companies

Forbes Magazine reports that many small and medium sized business companies from the Forbes 500 list are built on WordPress.


Matt Mullenweg: Professional Success


26) Awards and Achievements

Matt Mullenweg receives many awards and achievements.

In 2007, PC World lists his name on the 50 most influential people over the internet.

PC World ranks him number 16 on this list of people.

He is also appointed as an honorary patron of the University Philosophical Society in the realization of his contributions in Information Technology.


27) Transforms the Online World

Matt totally evolves the style of the internet and for this, heis known amongst the top ten most influential people online for transforming the online world.

He is also part of a list of Most Influential Angel Investors, which was generated by Forbes.


28) Features on the Cover of Linux Journal

In the mid of 2008, Matt is on the cover page of Linux Journal.

He is spotted in a Fight Club T-shirt in this picture.

In September, Inc. magazine includes his name in the list of the Top 30 Entrepreneurs under the age of 30.

Business Week includes him in the list of 25 most influential people; he is youngest in the list.


29) Patron of the University Philosophical Society

For his contributions to technology and writing, in 2009, Mullenweg is designated an honorary patron of the University Philosophical Society.

The same year, his company WordPress wins the Overall Best Open Source CMS award.

WordPress beats around 12000 other nominations in the category.


30) Net Worth

In 2010, Complex TV releases their list of The Richest 10 Internet Entrepreneurs under 30 and Matt Mullenweg ranks 9th with a net worth of $40 million.

He beats Statcounter creator Aodhen Cullen by $22 million lead even though Cullen is a year older than him.


31) 30 Most Influential CEOs Under 30

In the year 2010, a website Under30CEO also lists the their picks for the 30 Most Influential Under 30 CEOs with Matt Mullenweg coming in at number three just behind Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg and Groupon creator Andrew Mason.


32) A Company Offers $200 Million for Automattic

It is reported that a company once offers $200 million for Matt Mullenweg’s Automattic.

He turns it down and never announces which internet giant had made the offer.


33) Most Influential Angel Investors

Forbes also lists the twenty nine year old in their Most Influential Angel Investors and on their 30 under 30 in Media list.

Like the young entrepreneur Kevin Rose, Mullenweg is also a member of The Well, Charity: Water and raised over $28000 on his 28th birthday for the charity organization.


Social Work: Matt Mullenweg


34) Philanthropy

Matt is an enthusiastic supporter of various philanthropic organizations.

He supports causes like Long Now, Archive.

Org and Innocence Project.

He is the founder and director of the WordPress Foundation.


35) More Charity Work

He supports many causes such as promoting safe and clean drinking water in developing nations.

He is a part of a charity raiser organization and in the year 2012, he travels to Ethiopia with the other member of The Well organization.


Matt Mullenweg Personality


36) He is Humble

A New York Times feature recently reported that the soft spoken and blond haired young man is single and a bachelor.

His friend, Elissa Rinehart, told Houston Chronicles that he is still the same person from high school except that he dresses better.

She told Houston Chronicles that even after his worldwide success; he is still a humble person that it is “incredible”.


37) His Source of Inspiration

You may ask what inspires Matt to play the saxophone and be interested in computers.

Matt Mullenweg says it is all because of his father.

He is the one who teaches him to use the computer and he is the reason Matt plays saxophone.


38) Cool Nerd

Matt Mullenweg’s high school friend, Rene Orleans, says that the young Matt once told him that the internet is going to change everything.

His friends laughed about it back then.

Now they call him a “cool nerd” and a genius.


39) Loves His Roots

Matt Mullenweg loves his roots and ensures that he stays in Houston, Texas for at least two months a year.

He has an apartment in the Museum District and rents a car when he is goes there to visit old friends and family.


Matt Mullenweg Personal Life


40) Dates Glenda Bautista

Matt Mullenweg has been dating his girlfriend, Glenda Bautista, for a long time.

He has over 200 pictures posted of her on his website “ma.tt” where his sister and parents often leave comments.

Some rumors start in 2008 that he is going to propose to his girlfriend after he tweeted about a big financial transaction that is going to be a life changer.


41) Best Friends with Rene Orleans

Matt Mullenweg’s best friend, Rene Orleans, who is now a firefighter and a medical technician, says Matt helps him with his school papers and he knows the lyrics to every rap song.

In 2010, Mullenweg pays for his best friend’s honeymoon.


42) Issue with Chris Pearson

Matt Mullenweg has an issue with Thesis developer Chris Pearson in 2010 after the release of themes without the GPL license.

Matt says it is ‘disrespectful’ that despite Thesis dependence on a GPL product, it is not GPL.

There are rumors that WordPress is planning to sue Thesis creators.


Matt Mullenweg Personal Interests


43) Technology Club with Friends

Houston Chronicle also reveals that as a kid, Matt Mullenweg starts a technology club with his friends who take him to the streets of Houston looking for free-WiFi signals and later create a map using them.

He also starts the Palm Pilot Club with his friends.


44) Talks about His Love for Music

Mullenweg states in an interview that one of his very first projects on the computer is one assigned to him by the Middle School.

He says he was asked to program music on an “ancient Macintosh”.

That is when he starts to lean towards music but it was only years later that he realizes his true calling was computer programming.


45) Supports SXSW Festival

Matt Mullenweg is a great supporter of the SXSW festival.

He says the very first time he attends the festival; he has to drive his parent’s car all the way from Houston.

Now, he is a guest at the mega event and gives over 20 interviews.


46) Crush on Audrey Hepburn

Automatic’s website says that the 29-year-old Texas born, Matt Mullenweg, now lives in San Francisco and has a crush on the talented Audrey Hepburn from Breakfast with Tiffany’s.

The company calls him their Chief BBQ Taste Tester of Automattic.

His main job is traveling the world finding the best for the company.


Matt Mullenweg Views and Opinions


47) Talks about WordPress Users

Mullenweg also emphasizes on the importance of WordPress users and that he takes them as a basis for WordPress development.

He said, “The cool thing about WordPress users in particular is that they tend to be at the very, very bleeding edge”.

He means that they can be very unpredictable so he looks forward to what they will be looking for next.


48) His policy on Keeping Employees Productive

Mullenweg tells Kara Swisher his policy and approach to keep employees productive.

He says he focuses on two things when hiring employees: one is finding “the best people in the world” and second is to stay out their way and let them work.


49) Talks to Soap Box

Matt Mullenweg also tells Soap Box that the most important aspect of creating a business and products is one hundred percent trust.

He says, “You have to be able to let go if you’re going to scale.

That has been one of the hardest things for me to learn.

For a while we would hire people but I would still try to do everything myself.

It doesn’t work.”


50) Talks about Growth of WordPress

At the SXSW Interactive, in a session titled “A Home on the Web: The State of Blogging in 2013”, Matt Mullenweg tells the audience that the growth of WordPress users keeps growing every year even though the average length of a blog post remains the same at 280 characters.

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