Today, I’m launching AI Leaders.
AI Leaders is a virtual AI Literacy course that gives 80 students the opportunity to earn living-wage WordPress jobs.
WordPress is an amazing economic engine.
When I was 17, I started using WordPress because I was tired of writing manual HTML to update sites. That shift changed my life. Over the next decade, I made a career building WordPress sites, but the real value wasn’t just money. WordPress allowed me to travel, experiment with art, and build new businesses.
WordPress now powers over 40% of the internet and fuels a $590 billion economy. It isn’t just a blogging tool; it is a critical piece of global infrastructure.
WordPress offers great new AI potential.
WordPress projects like the Abilities API and MCP adapter add integration with Claude or ChatGPT, while the WordPress Playground makes way for Vibe Coding opportunities.
Those projects are just a start.
I’m sure a new generation of coders will make WordPress more efficient, easier to use, and feature rich with AI.
To accelerate WordPress’ AI Future, I’ve teamed up with the WordPress Foundation, UIC, Louisiana Tech, and the Louisiana Educate Program to build AI Leaders.
We are inviting 80 individuals from Illinois and Louisiana to turn their interest in AI into paid WordPress work. Participants will collaborate with mentors — including myself, Mary Hubbard (Executive Director of WordPress), and Stefin Pasternak — to build projects that demonstrate WordPress remains the most efficient tool for creative expression.
WordPress has been good to me. By attracting and training new talent, WP can remain an economic engine for generations to come.
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