If You Control the Board, You Control the Company

flux.law

2 pointsfinsrud2 comments

> On September 9, 2026, Automattic confirmed that its board had placed founder and CEO Matt Mullenweg on paid leave and appointed CFO Mark Davies as interim CEO. Mullenweg reportedly remained a director and voted against the board's decision.

As if I need another reason to despise Mullenweg, this is a classic conflict of interest. Voting as a director on your own employment is an excellent form of self-sabotage.

We'll see how it all shakes out, but yes, I would bet there are some sticky conflict of interest issues at play.

The ends often justify the means (i.e. if the company does well, it's easier to retroactively overlook the conflicts; if the company flounders, the scrutiny will be intense).

Reply on news.ycombinator.com