Hi there, I am so excited! 
AI is here. WordPress.com just released the new AI builder for their new users. I am so excited as it solves the blank page onboarding problem, new WordPress users struggled with. Now they have an AI buddy to get online quickly. You can try it here. Let me know what you think, just hit reply or email pauli@gutenbergtimes.com. Rae Morey at The Repository has the skinny for you.
Next week is WordPress 6.8 release! I hope you are prepared.
Enjoy the conversations and updates in this shorter than usual edition. Take your time, slow down!
Yours, 
Birgit
Developing Gutenberg and WordPress
WordPress 6.8 RC 3 was released this week. In case you missed them before:
Consult the WordPress 6.8 Field Guide about developer relevant updates and the Source of Truth (WordPress 6.8) for Block editor updates.
As for almost every WordPress release, Carlo Daniele, Kinsta, published a comprehensive guide: What’s new in WordPress 6.8: security upgrades, performance gains, editor enhancements, and more! He breaks down the benefits of WordPress 6.8, offering actionable tips and advice for website owners and developers looking to take advantage of its capabilities.
Latest episode: Gutenberg Changelog 116 – WordPress 6.8, Source of Truth, Field Guide, Gutenberg 20.5 and 20.6 with special guest JC Palmes, WebDev Studios
Milana Cap wrote the What’s new for developers? (April 2025) on the WordPress Developer Blog. As recent updates, she emphasizes performance and user experience, introducing a “performance mode” for speed prioritization and improved error messages for debugging. The core team has also enhanced accessibility by adding ARIA attributes and semantic HTML, facilitating the creation of faster, more secure, and accessible sites for developers.
Plugins, Themes, and Tools for #nocode site builders and owners
Steve Burge had a conversation with Brad Williams, co-founder of Webdev Studios on WordPress as a World-Class Publishing Platform. They talked extensively about how the agency’s approach working with organizations that want and need to transition to a block-based presence. Williams cited site performance reasons, great-looking content within minutes, and a better user experience. They talked quite a bit about an incremental approach to bring clients to the new system, so certain high-traffic pages can run on a block theme while the rest of the site stays on the legacy systems a while longer. Williams also covered why companies with multiple sites should consider using WordPress as a multi-site network. Via Bluesky, Williams also invited people to signup for the beta of their next product to help with the incremental migration process.
Hitesh Patel, a developer in Ahmedabad, India, released his first plugin to the WordPress plugin repository: Flexi Patterns. With this plugin installed, you can create and manage custom pattern categories, making it easier to access and use design elements in the block editor. It’s the first version.
WooCommerce 9.8.1 has been released. In his release post ,WooCommerce 9.8: Modernized Designs and Email Previews, Brian Coords highlights
- New Coming Soon templates
- Modernized email templates and previews
- A faster WooCommerce admin
- Display a Brand in the Single Product template
- Redirect to “Add product” task if no products created in store yet
You might also be interested in the API Updates for Store API and REST API
“Keeping up with Gutenberg – Index 2025”
A chronological list of the WordPress Make Blog posts from various teams involved in Gutenberg development: Design, Theme Review Team, Core Editor, Core JS, Core CSS, Test, and Meta team from Jan. 2024 on. Updated by yours truly. The previous years are also available: 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024
Building Blocks and Tools for the Block editor
JuanMa Garrido continue with his series Data in the Block Editor with @wordpress/data on his live stream. Part 4 is now available on YouTube.
Previous Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 are also available on YouTube
Nathan Wrigley published another episode on the WPTavern Jukebox podcast. 164 – Milana Cap on the Interactivity and HTML APIs, and Their Enormous Potential. The conversation revealed two exciting developments in WordPress. Milana Cap explained the Interactivity API using a party analogy – blocks that were once isolated can now communicate freely, enabling features like shopping carts to interact seamlessly with other elements.
When discussing the HTML API, Cap’s enthusiasm was evident as she described how it replaces JavaScript DOM manipulation with faster PHP solutions. Built by Dennis Snell, this WordPress-original feature particularly benefits enterprise sites. These standardized APIs, she emphasized, mean developers can finally stop reinventing the wheel and build on a common foundation.
Need a plugin .zip from Gutenberg’s master branch?
Gutenberg Times provides daily build for testing and review.
Now also available via WordPress Playground. There is no need for a test site locally or on a server. Have you been using it? Email me with your experience
Questions? Suggestions? Ideas?
Don’t hesitate to send them via email or
send me a message on WordPress Slack or Twitter @bph.
For questions to be answered on the Gutenberg Changelog,
send them to changelog@gutenbergtimes.com
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