In 2026, almost all marketing companies will be using AI to varying degrees to assist them in their workflow whether that be with ideation, vibe coding, writing titles and descriptions for their websites or designing graphics. While no one would deny AI can be a useful tool for marketers to improve workflow and performance, overrelying on these tools, especially when writing content or producing code can create negative results for your site, especially if you are using it to create regurgitated content or intrinsic code. This can damage rankings and performance, which all marketers can agree is the opposite of helpful.

Luckily for marketers, WordPress, the most used content management platform worldwide, have released a guide on how to use AI to combat “AI Slop” as they call it and make sure your using AI to the benefit, not detriment of your site.

Core Principles

WordPress have released some core principles to help people remain ethical in their use of AI on their site. We’ll go through this principles together and talk about why they are important for maintaining a healthy WordPress site.

• You are responsible for your own contributions – Everything that goes live on your site comes under your domain, so any content that you produce or code that is written with the help of AI, you need to make sure that you understand it and that it is helpful to your site in a meaningful way. If you are producing content or code you don’t understand you are likely to be giving content to your users that has hallucinations or adding code to the site that could break functionality.

• Disclose when AI is used in content – Unless you’re using AI in a very minor way to make small adjustments, then you should always disclose to the end user that AI has been used to help create a piece of work.

• Non-code contributions and assets – Making sure you are licensed to use any and all of the assets that you have acquired from AI is important. You need to make sure that all images and videos are available for public use otherwise you could be infringing on copyright and be penalised for this.

• Quality over volume (No AI Slop) – You need to review anything that has been created by AI that you will add to your site thoroughly to make sure it is quality. AI could be creating bloated or unnecessary code for example when a simple fix would have sufficed.

What this means for Marketers

AI can be a useful tool but making sure it is fully licensed, you understand – can ensure the quality of what is being produced and making sure that you have thoroughly reviewed any AI content going live on your site and have explicitly stated to end users when it is used, will ensure that marketers are complying with the latest AI guidelines and making safe and reliable content while improving your workflow.

10Web announced Vibe for WordPress, an AI tool that can generate a fully functioning WordPress site from prompts. This could be a game-changer in the marketing industry, significantly reducing the time and cost it would take to make a fully functioning site.

How does Vibe for WordPress work?

When users visit this URL, there is a prompt box that allows users to provide the name of your site and describe it. This prompt will be used as the basis for the creation of your site.

I created a prompt for a new Intelligency site to test out what Vibe has to offer:

Once you have submitted your prompt, Vibe gives you a chance to lay out a basic site structure for how you want your site to look and the pages you want to create. Vibe will then autogenerate a site based on the prompts you gave it earlier.

Above is the Hero section of the new homepage Vibe generated for my new Intelligency site. While it’s only basic, this could be a huge time saver for developers. Giving them a nice framework to build out from. Below is a review section I asked in my prompt to be added to the homepage.

Once Vibe has created your site, you can log in to the backend and edit functionality, including creating new pages or adding a plug-in, just as you would with any other WordPress site. Vibe is also SEO friendly and makes sure any new site created follows key seo principles, such as optimised content and applying Schema markup to pages.

You can also use Vibe to update your already existing site with AI to give it a “fresher” look, but make sure that when prompting it to tell it to generate as a draft version, so you don’t overwrite your live site.

What this means for Marketers

Having the ability to use AI to create new but also update existing content with the click of a button makes site creation immediately more accessible to non-developers, while also speeding up workflows for developers themselves.

A vulnerability across 3 WordPress file plug-ins is leaving up to 1.3 million sites on the platform susceptible to cyber attacks. The plug-ins affected include File Manager WordPress Plugin, Advanced File Manager and File Manager Pro.

How are sites affected?

The core vulnerability can be exploited by anyone on the internet, without a login, if the file manager has been set to publicly accessible. Once the hackers exploited the plugin they can start deleting files on your site causing major damage. This could lead to themes, plug-ins and media libraries being completely wiped out or completely disabling a site, leading to major SEO ranking drops, financial loss and damage to brand reputation.

How is the vulnerability caused?

The vulnerability is caused by outdated versions of elFinder file manager. Elfinder is not a WordPress plugin but rather an open-source file manager library that can be integrated into other tools. These vulnerable WordPress plugins use elFinder to provide their file management features. Versions from 2.1.64 and earlier are susceptible and are easily manipulated by attackers.

How to fix the issue

Site owners can make sure their sites stay safe by simply updating to the latest versions of the plug-ins which don’t use the susceptible version of elFinder and also ensure all file managers are not publicly accessible on their site. Make sure to restrict access only to accounts that are trusted such as admins.

How this affects Site Owners

This is not the first and won’t be the last case of WordPress plugin vulnerabilities causing issues for site owners. Many of these vulnerabilities often come from third party libraries. Site owners need to continually monitor plug-ins and make sure they are updated promptly when possible to reduce the risk of vulnerability.

WordPress is forming an AI team to help with the development of AI products on the platform.

What is WordPress

WordPress is an open source content management system which allows users to create and manage websites including updating blogs, imagery, and customising UX. Users can use plug-ins which can be added to their site from WordPress extensive library which allow for enhanced customisation features and increased website functionality.

Why is WordPress forming an Open AI team

The open source nature of WordPress means that developers can create all manner of plug-ins and many have already begun to experiment with AI tools as current WordPress developers have published 660 different AI plug-ins for WordPress. 

The AI team will consist of James LePage, head of AI at Automattic, Felix Arntz and Pascal Birchel from Google, and Jeff Paul, director of Open Source at 10up and their role will be to oversee the development of AI tools. 

This is what WordPress Executive Director, Mary Hubbard, had to say in her latest blog post on why this matters, “Strategic focus: A unified team stewards AI development thoughtfully, avoids fragmentation, and ensures alignment with the long-term goals of WordPress.

Shared innovation: Contributors and companies are actively exploring AI across the ecosystem. This team provides a central place to collaborate, share ideas, and build together.

Rapid iteration: Like the Performance Team, we’ll take a plugin-first approach. Canonical plugins will allow us to move quickly, gather feedback, and deliver real value without waiting on the Core release cycle.”

Why is this important for SEOs

WordPress is the most popular CMS on the internet powering an estimated 43.4% of websites worldwide. Increased AI functionality within WordPress will be key for SEOs to enhance workflows and speed up functionality and processes of their site to increase workplace productivity. 

Choosing the right Content Management System is crucial for any business wanting to thrive online. These platforms allow users to create and adapt their websites and content for their audiences, which is the most fundamental element of having success online.

There are a variety of CMS to choose from all with different strengths and weaknesses. In this article, we will run through some of the most popular CMS and which one is the right choice for your business.

WordPress

WordPress is the most popular CMS system currently in use. It is an open-source website which means the code is made available to the public to be modified. This is important because it allows users to add customisable features (plug-ins) to their platforms which enhance functionality and diversify content, making it an ideal platform for a wide range of businesses. Websites can accommodate websites of various sizes so is not only ideal for beginners.

Wix

Wix is an easy to use CMS system that allows users to “drag and drop” elements to build their websites. Ideal for beginners who have small businesses, Wix could be your go to option. However, for larger businesses or businesses that want to scale in size Wix may not be the best option. It is not open source so you are limited to what you can change on the site outside of your content. 

HubSpot CMS

Hubspot is a customer relationship management system that also offers its own CMS. Hubspot’s CMS is available free and has loads of useful marketing features including personalised content, email marketing, automation, membership websites. On the free version the hubspot logo will appear on forms and pages and users are limited to 25 pages. So if you’re   thinking about building a comprehensive long term website, Hubspot CMS might not be the way to go unless you’re considering getting a paid subscription.

Shopify

Shopify is an e-commerce platform that has a user friendly interface, allows for scalability and has advanced features such as secure checkout, multiple payment options, customer support and international selling. However, some users find the platforms content creation and customisation can be complex with the use of apps required for any complex customisation which increases cost.

If you need help choosing the right CMS system for your business feel free to get in touch.

SEO is the process of optimising your website to rank higher on search engines, when designing websites SEO should have a critical role in your site design to avoid causing technical problems in the future that need to be addressed retroactively. In this article, we will discuss different aspects of web design that are directly impacted by SEO and considerations for users to make when building their websites.

Mobile Friendliness

Mobile is king. Searches on mobile account for 60% of web traffic in 2025, despite this, many businesses still design their websites on desktop, making an impressive website, but treating mobile optimisation as an afterthought. Websites should be designed with mobile as a number one priority due to the sheer amount of search traffic it currently generates. Having a site that is equipped to enhance the user experience on mobile and desktop devices will improve your search rankings.

Page Load Speed

Page load speed is an important ranking factor on Google and is something that should be considered when designing a new site. Content management systems, such as WordPress, have plug-ins which allow users to add custom functionality to their sites but these plug-ins can come at the cost of page speed as they are all separately loaded onto the page. It is better for sites to be designed with extra functionality written into the code and limited use of plug-ins in order to make sure page speed remains fast.

Image size can also affect page speed. If image files are too big, they can increase page speed, making sure all images are optimised for a site when designing your site is important for SEO web design.

Copy and Content Optimisation

When designing websites, people can try to limit the amount of words they have on their site to try to make it more visually appealing and engaging. While this can be good, there needs to be a balance for SEO purposes. There should still be enough scope to add copy to improve keywords rankings and optimise content for SEO. Being able to explain concepts in detail and giving a user all the information they need is precisely what makes Google value content higher up the site when it is high in rich content.

Site Structure

Having a well thought out site structure is important for SEO as it allows Google to crawl and index your site and understand your content easier. This is extremely important for appearing high on the SERP, if Google is confused by your content or site architecture it will make it difficult to rank meaningfully. Therefore having SEO in mind when designing your site architecture is important, make sure to not include unnecessary pages on your site that confuse search engines and users.

Hubspot, one of the leading CRM platforms, has seen a major decline in its organic traffic levels dropping from 13.5 million in November to 8.6 million in December. Community members have been speculating what could have caused such a dramatic decline in traffic levels, with the blog especially taking a huge traffic hit. In this article, we will dive into the different reasons why HubSpot may have seen a heavy decline in traffic.

What has happened to HubSpot?

Google released a number of updates at the back end of 2024 including the November core update, the December core update and a December spam update which affected traffic levels for a number of sites all over the internet.

These updates obviously had an impact on HubSpots SEO content, especially their well renowned blog, which has been a leading industry blog for many years. Many industry insiders are speculating that HubSpots blog is over-saturated with weak content or that much of their content lacks topical authority as it has been created outside of their area of expertise.

Many SEOs are concerned at the sudden dramatic fall in traffic levels for HubSpots blog as it has widely been considered one of the best created blogs on the Internet for a number of years.

What can HubSpot do to bounce back?

There are a number of ways HubSpot could address their drop in traffic levels. Some SEOs are calling for HubSpot to clean up their blog and delete any outdated or “weak” content that they don’t have any topical authority on. However, pruning a blog with thousands of posts and making sure it is done correctly is a huge task that requires lots of resource and time dedicated to the task. Others have suggested that HubSpot should tailor their content more towards their topical authority going forward.

What can we learn from this?

If SEOs are to be believed then making sure your content is relevant to your site is crucial to maintaining traffic levels as Google is cracking down on content that is outside of topical authority. Therefore, it is important for all SEOs to make sure that their content is highly relevant and informative to their target audience going forward, now more than ever.

The ongoing legal battle between WP Engine, a popular WordPress hosting service, and Automattic, the parent company behind WordPress.com, has taken a significant turn. On December 11th, the US District Court for the Northern District of California issued a preliminary injunction in favour of WP Engine, ordering Automattic to cease actions that disrupted WP Engine’s business operations.

This ruling adds another chapter to a conflict that has highlighted tensions within the WordPress ecosystem, affecting businesses and users alike.

The court’s order demands that Automattic stop:

“Blocking, disabling, or interfering with WP Engine’s and/or its employees’, users’, customers’, or partners’ access to WordPress.org.”

“Interfering with WP Engine’s control over, or access to, plugins or extensions.”

Furthermore, Automattic is required to restore WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org, including its resources and functionalities, to how they existed before September 20, 2024.

Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín was critical of Automattic’s actions, stating that its targeted measures specifically against WP Engine exacerbated harm to the company.

This harm was evident in a notable increase in cancellation requests from WP Engine customers during the conflict—a 14% spike between September 26 and 30 and a 17% increase between October 1 and 14.

What sparked the dispute?

The conflict began with accusations from Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg, who described WP Engine as a “cancer” on the WordPress ecosystem for allegedly taking more from the open-source community than it contributed. This led Automattic to block WP Engine’s access to WordPress.org servers and seize control of WP Engine’s Advanced Custom Fields (ACF) plugin.

In response, WP Engine filed a lawsuit alleging that Automattic’s actions caused immediate and irreparable harm. The court agreed, stating that Automattic’s actions were “designed to induce breach or disruption” of WP Engine’s business relationships.

The broader implications

For marketers and businesses relying on WordPress, the preliminary injunction brings much-needed stability. WP Engine can now resume using WordPress.org’s critical resources, ensuring functionality for its customers. Additionally, the ruling underscores the importance of fair play in the WordPress ecosystem, a community-driven platform that relies on collaboration and mutual benefit.

Automattic, however, is not backing down. A company spokesperson called the ruling a “preliminary order designed to maintain the status quo” and emphasized that it was issued without full discovery of the facts. They plan to file counterclaims against WP Engine and remain confident about prevailing at trial.

Mullenweg also expressed dissatisfaction with the decision, sharing a post on X that criticized the court’s order for forcing an open-source maintainer to provide services to a user.

A win for WP Engine

WP Engine has hailed the court’s decision as a victory, with a spokesperson stating:

“The order will bring back much-needed stability to the WordPress ecosystem. WP Engine is focused on serving our partners and customers and working with the community to find ways to ensure a vigorous, and thriving WordPress community.”

For now, the court’s decision protects WP Engine’s operations and offers reassurance to businesses relying on its services. However, marketers and website owners should stay updated on this case, as its resolution could influence how WordPress operates in the future.

Automattic CEO, Matt Mullenweg is intensifying his ongoing battle against managed hosting platform WP Engine, creating a tracking website that shows a list of all the domains that have left WP Engine since their initial fallout in September of this year.

WordPress vs WP Engine

The issues initially arose when Automaticc CEO, Matt Mullenweg, made disparaging claims about WP Engine, including that they should be paying WordPress ‘’a significant percentage of its revenue for a licence to the WordPress trademark’’ due to the use of WP in their name.

I previously wrote about the issue in September, when 159 employees left WordPress due to the ongoing turmoil. This did not manage to dissuade Matt Mullenweg however who has continued waging war against WP Engine.

WP Engine Tracker

The WPEngine tracker site gives users a list of all the domains that have left WP Engine, with the current figure standing at 26,050 as of 06/12/2024. The tracker also allows businesses to find new website hosts with current top destinations including Pressable, Bluehost and Digital Ocean.

WP Engine Response

WP Engines have responded by filing a lawsuit against Automaticc, the parent company of WordPress and mentioned the WP Engine tracker in their lawsuit stating the following 

“Just last week, in an apparent effort to brag about how successful they have been in harming WPE, Defendants created a website—www.wordpressenginetracker.com—that “list[s] . . . every domain hosted by @wpengine, which you can see decline every day. 15,080 sites have left already since September 21st. September 21 was not selected randomly. It is the day after Defendants’ self-proclaimed nuclear war began – an admission that these customer losses were caused by Defendants’ wrongful actions. In this extraordinary attack on WPE and its customers, Defendants included on their disparaging website a downloadable file of ‘all [WPE] sites ready for a new home’—that is, WPE’s customer list, literally inviting others to target and poach WPE’s clients while Defendants’ attacks on WPE continued.”

The legal battle between the two companies is set to intensify in the near future as this conflict shows no signs of slowing down for the foreseeable future.

WordPress, the most popular CMS worldwide, released its latest version 6.7 ‘’Rollins’’ on November 12, 2024 with a whole host of new features including a new default theme, more design features, faster pattern loading and 65+ accessibility fixes to improve user experience.

Twenty Twenty-Five

Twenty Twenty-Five is the new default WordPress theme replacing the previous Twenty Twenty-Four theme with the latest 6.7 update. The theme was created to allow both big and small website owners to create unique designs. Here’s what WordPress had to say about their latest theme.

“Twenty Twenty-Five is designed for bloggers of all scales—from hobbyist writers to major news sites—capturing a balance between simplicity and versatility. It allows you to intuitively create a site that feels truly personal while offering the flexibility for complex designs. With a diverse array of patterns and templates for everything from landing pages to photo blogs, the theme is tailored to enable seamless storytelling for any purpose. Natural, universal imagery and thoughtfully chosen typography bring warmth and a timeless aesthetic that resonates on a global scale.”

“Built to support multiple languages and visual styles, Twenty Twenty-Five includes a curated selection of colour palettes and font pairings, ensuring both accessibility and elegance in design. Whether you lean toward a minimalist personal blog, a striking photo gallery, or a content-rich magazine layout, the theme’s templates and design tools empower you to build a site that is uniquely yours.”

New features

• Zoom Out Feature – WordPress has also released a new zoom out feature, which allows users to see an overall view of the page while making customisations instead of editing one block at a time. This enhanced view has been added to help users have a more streamlined process when it comes to creating new layouts.

• Improved Font Management Tools – WordPress 6.7 comes with improved font management, allowing users to now delete font size presets and use their own customizable presets site wide. Also dynamic font sizing or ‘’fluid typography’’ allows users to have dynamic scaling of fonts based on screen dimensions.

• Accessibility Improvements – WordPress has announced 65 accessibility fixes without going into too much detail about each specific change heres what WordPress had to say “65+ accessibility fixes and enhancements focus on foundational aspects of the WordPress experience, from improving user interface components and keyboard navigation in the Editor, to an accessible heading on WordPress login screens and clearer labelling throughout.”

• Performance Updates – WordPress 6.7 will have faster pattern loading times but also has a new auto image sizing feature that will improve loading times for lazy load images.

WordPress 6.7 is the latest in a long line of releases aimed at improving the user experience and enhancing features for developers. If you need help with your WordPress website or want to update to the latest version of WordPress, please get in touch info@intelligencygroup.com.