All posts tagged: board

Automattic confirms Mullenweg has returned as CEO after attempted ouster by board

Automattic confirms Mullenweg has returned as CEO after attempted ouster by board

Published by skeptic

After a tumultuous week, which saw WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg ousted from his position as CEO of Automattic, WordPress.com’s parent company, by way of a board vote, the company has now issued a statement confirming that Mullenweg has returned to his position. “Matt Mullenweg is the chairman and CEO of Automattic, with full support of the board and if you search online you can see many top executives and Automatticians supporting him as well,” a company spokesperson shared with TechCrunch via email just after 5 PM ET on Saturday evening. (The mention of online support appears to refer to supportive posts on X that Mullenweg has been reposting from his X account.) Automattic’s board had voted earlier this week to put Mullenweg on a paid leave of absence for unknown reasons. The move seemingly came as a surprise to Mullenweg, who posted on Automattic’s Slack, accusing the board members of “conspiring” against him. Automattic confirmed Mullenweg’s removal to TechCrunch on Wednesday, saying that Mullenweg was “currently on leave” and that Automattic’s Chief Financial Officer, Mark …

Board votes to rename Nashville International Airport for Dolly Parton

Board votes to rename Nashville International Airport for Dolly Parton

Published by Sam Flores

Nashville’s airport authority board unanimously voted Friday to begin the process to rename the city’s airport to honor late country music legend and Tennessee icon Dolly Parton. The vote by the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority did not establish a new name for Nashville International Airport, but it begins the process, the board said in a statement. “It’s official!” Nashville International Airport said on social media when announcing the 6-0 airport authority vote, which the board described as “the first step in a multifaceted process.” Parton, beloved by country music fans around the world, died last month at the age of 80 after a brief battle with cancer, her family said on Aug. 25. 00:36 Nashville board votes to rename airport for Dolly Parton 00:0000:00 “While a final name has not yet been determined, we are working closely with the appropriate parties to thoughtfully determine how Dolly Parton’s name and legacy will be incorporated,” the airport authority said. The airport authority said that it anticipates having more definitive plans to share about the implementation in the …

Board in charge of Nashville airport votes to approve naming it after Dolly Parton

Board in charge of Nashville airport votes to approve naming it after Dolly Parton

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This The board in charge of the bustling Nashville International Airport has unanimously voted to approve naming it after the late “Queen of Country,” Dolly Parton. Parton, a humble country music icon who is remembered for her charitable ways just as much as for her singing career, will be immortalized at the airport in her home state after a push from fans and state officials. After the singer died at the age of 80 late last month following a brief battle with cancer, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and the Nashville International Airport announced their intent to name the airport in honor of Parton. “Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state,” Lee said in a statement on August 28. “From her rural mountain home in East Tennessee to global stages, Dolly carried the Volunteer Spirit with her. “At a …

Nscale adds former OpenAI exec Fidji Simo to its board ahead of potential IPO

Nscale adds former OpenAI exec Fidji Simo to its board ahead of potential IPO

Published by skeptic

Nscale, the buzzy U.K.-based AI data center startup, has appointed former OpenAI, Meta and Instacart executive Fidji Simo to its board. Simo joins high-profile tech executives Sheryl Sandberg, Susan Decker and Nick Clegg on Nscale’s board ahead of the startup’s anticipated IPO this fall. Formerly CEO of AGI Deployment at OpenAI, essentially the No. 2 executive at the AI lab, Simo left the company in July citing health reasons. She still advises the company on a part-time basis. Before OpenAI, Simo was chair and CEO of Instacart, where she led the company through its 2023 IPO. She also spent more than a decade at Meta, including as head of the Facebook app. Simo also sits on Shopify’s board. Nscale’s founder and CEO, Josh Payne, said Simo is one of the few leaders who understand what it means to scale products used by billions of people and the demands those products place on the underlying systems. “That’s what we’re building for at Nscale,” he said in a statement. “Fidji joins a board we’ve built deliberately, with …

Bank of Korea to assess conditions to determine pace and timing of tightening, says board member

Bank of Korea to assess conditions to determine pace and timing of tightening, says board member

Published by Sam Flores

SEOUL, Sept 10 : A board member of the Bank of Korea said on Thursday the central bank would assess external and internal policy conditions, including the impact of the previous two rate hikes, to determine the timing and pace of further tightening. • “I think it is necessary to assess changes in external and internal conditions to determine the timing and pace of additional hikes,” Kim Jong-hwa said in remarks released with the central bank’s semiannual monetary policy report. • Economic growth will remain robust and inflation will exceed the target level for a considerable period of time, Kim said, noting price pressure from the Middle East conflict and the export boom as the most important factor. • Kim said the central bank would also closely monitor the impact of the previous two increases in interest rates. • Global AI investments, which have been leading South Korea’s semiconductor export boom, are expected to expand for a considerable time on growing demand and intensifying competition, the BOK said in the report. • Last month, the …

Automattic’s board forces CEO Matt Mullenweg into leave of absence

Automattic’s board forces CEO Matt Mullenweg into leave of absence

Published by skeptic

Matt Mullenweg, the founder and CEO of Automattic, best known as the parent company of WordPress.com, has been put on a leave of absence by his board against his will, according to a Slack message seen by TechCrunch. Earlier Wednesday, Mullenweg posted in a Slack channel visible to all employees that the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Mark Davies, had “conspired” with other board members Ann Dunwoody, Toni Schneider, and Sue Decker to vote to put Mullenweg on a paid leave of absence. The message read: And the biggest news: I won’t be able to make the [meeting] tomorrow. @Mark Davies has conspired with @Ann Dunwoody, @Toni, and @Sue Decker behind my back and they voted to put me on a paid leave of absence. I voted against that. Wishing Mark and all of you the very best. To clarify @Mark Davies was voted as interim CEO. I received the resolution 50 minutes before the meeting start, and requested repeatedly for time to have it reviewed by independent legal counsel, even a few hours, which was …

OpenAI adds a prominent AI doomer to its board of directors

OpenAI adds a prominent AI doomer to its board of directors

Published by skeptic

Paul Christiano, an influential AI researcher focused on keeping AI systems aligned with human interests and under human control, is joining the OpenAI Foundation board, the frontier lab said Wednesday. “I now believe there is a meaningful risk that rapid acceleration in AI capabilities leads to catastrophic and irreversible loss of control in the very near term,” Christiano wrote in a social media post. “I do not think that the AI industry in general, including OpenAI, is currently on track to reduce this risk to an acceptable level. I’m joining because I believe that if OpenAI rises to the occasion we could significantly reduce risk.” Christiano wrote that using AI models to train subsequent AI systems could result in an explosion of capabilities that their creators can’t control. He joins the board as OpenAI faces renewed scrutiny over its safety procedures, following a series of incidents in which AI agents broke out of restraints and penetrated outside computer systems without the knowledge of OpenAI’s researchers. On Tuesday, Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon resigned his position to …

The Best New Board Books for the Littlest Readers

The Best New Board Books for the Littlest Readers

Published by Jenni Sidey

Highlights Press Every toddler wants to help — and We’re Better Together shows them they already can. Follow a group of little ones through the small, everyday moments that build belonging: cleaning up side by side, making music, welcoming someone new. Along the way, kids discover that community isn’t just something they’re part of — it’s something they help create. With gentle words from Eileen Spinelli and warm illustrations by Ekaterina Trukhan, this board book helps the youngest readers see that who they are makes their whole community stronger. Board books are among my favorites for many reasons. The obvious indestructibility is a huge plus and can benefit groups beyond the babies who will eat or rip anything weaker than cardboard. I love having a basket of board books in my elementary school library for students who are, ahem, enthusiastic and want access to books they can read without needing full-body control. Board books are easy baby shower gifts, and their popularity has encouraged publishers to go beyond the ABCs and 123s, printing some beloved …

The board everyone recommends now costs , so here’s what to buy instead

The $15 board everyone recommends now costs $60, so here’s what to buy instead

Published by skeptic

For years, the Raspberry Pi Zero lineup has been the go-to answer for the cheapest little computer you can drop into a project. At $15, it made sense for everything from a Pi-hole ad blocker to a homemade dashcam. But that math is now falling apart. Search for one today, and you’ll find listings anywhere from $40 to $90, with a lot of sellers landing right around $60. It’s not that Raspberry Pi suddenly repriced the board out of spite. It’s a mix of scarcity, resale markups, and a wider memory crunch that’s rattled the entire single-board computer market. Related I replaced my $60 Raspberry Pi with a $5 ESP32 and my smart home never noticed Smaller board, same smart home. The $15 board still exists, just not in stock Raspberry Pi kept its promise. Resellers didn’t Original photo by Phil King. Free to use, NAR Raspberry Pi has been upfront that the increases sweeping its 2GB-and-up lineup come from surging DRAM and flash memory costs, and the company explicitly said it didn’t expect changes …

Kennedy Board Says It Will Delay Adding Trump’s Name to the Center by One Month

Kennedy Board Says It Will Delay Adding Trump’s Name to the Center by One Month

Published by Jenni Sidey

The Kennedy Center board told a federal judge on Thursday that it will halt efforts to add President Trump’s name to the building until at least October 8, delaying its plans by a month. The announcement followed an emergency court hearing prompted by a Justice Department filing this week warning that the Kennedy Center could be demolished and potentially replaced with an outdoor amphitheater if the board is not allowed to close the building for two years for repairs. At the same time, the board is pushing to inscribe President Trump’s name on the front of the building, with the line “Restored and renovated by President Donald J. Trump” beneath John F. Kennedy’s name.  Related Articles President Trump’s name was added to the front of the building in December 2025, but U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper ordered it removed in May 2026, ruling that only Congress has the authority to change the center’s name. The name was ultimately removed in June, but the board defied Cooper’s ruling and announced it would rename the building. A …