WPGraphQL, a popular plugin that provides an extendable GraphQL schema and API for WordPress sites, is set to become a canonical plugin on WordPress.org. Its creator and maintainer, Jason Bahl, has joined Automattic after spending 3.5 years at WP Engine, allowing him to continue his work on WPGraphQL.
WPGraphQL adds a flexible and powerful GraphQL API to WordPress, enabling efficient querying and interaction with your site’s data. It allows developers to interact with WordPress data using GraphQL queries instead of the traditional REST API, making it ideal for building modern, headless WordPress applications.
Canonical Plugins
Canonical plugins were first introduced to the WordPress community in 2009 to provide users with optional features that offer higher reliability than regular plugins.
Canonical plugins would be plugins that are community developed (multiple developers, not just one person) and address the most popular functionality requests with superlative execution. These plugins would be GPL and live in the WordPress.org repo, and would be developed in close connection with WordPress core. There would be a very strong relationship between core and these plugins that ensured that a) the plugin code would be secure and the best possible example of coding standards, and b) that new versions of WordPress would be tested against these plugins prior to release to ensure compatibility. There would be a screen within the Plugins section of the WordPress admin to feature these canonical plugins as a kind of Editor’s Choice or Verified guarantee. These plugins would be a true extension of core WordPress in terms of compatibility, security and support.
WPGraphQL & Jason Bahl’s Journey
Jason Bahl launched the WPGraphQL plugin in 2016. In 2019, he joined the Gatsby Team to work on WPGraphQL full-time and continued there till joining WP Engine 2021 as a Principal Software Engineer maintaining WPGraphQL.
About leaving Gatsby, he said, “The team I was part of was asking me to start transitioning to work more on other Gatsby integrations, such as Contentful and Shopify, and work less on WordPress and WPGraphQL. This doesn’t mean Gatsby was abandoning WordPress or WPGraphQL, just that I would need to spend less time on it and prioritize other things… WP Engine is investing in the future of headless WordPress, and they see WPGraphQL as an important part of that future.”
Working at WP Engine, he published over 100 releases of WPGraphQL, re-architected WPGraphQL for ACF, introduced WPGraphQL Smart Cache, and helped countless users successfully deploy decoupled sites powered by WPGraphQL.
He shared this about WP Engine: “While WP Engine has treated me well personally, the focus on open-source contributions from the organization has declined during my time there. My time was also reallocated away from WPGraphQL and community projects as internal initiatives took priority. Any company needs to focus on internal growth. Still, I believe there’s a conversation to be had about how that fits into the broader open-source community and whether it supports long-term success. Several other former colleagues and I tried to talk about how WP Engine could better participate in Open Source, but those conversations didn’t always gain traction. Hopefully, those conversations can begin again. I don’t have the answers, but I do know there is a problem.”
Jason’s Opinion About Matt and Automattic
Jason has made it clear that he does not agree with everything Matt has done. “I’ve told Matt directly that I don’t agree with everything he’s done — and he has welcomed the disagreement. For example, I don’t think WordCamp US was the right time or place for his speech. I also do not agree with blocking WP Engine customers from WordPress.org without more notice. Should WordPress.org be required to remain a free service forever? Not necessarily. But should long-time users receive advance notice when significant changes are made? I think so.”
Leadership often involves making uncomfortable choices that others might not fully understand or agree with. His historical actions have led WordPress to its current success, and I believe that bold moves—though uncomfortable—are sometimes necessary to ensure the long-term future of WordPress. As a maintainer of open-source software, my livelihood depends on people like Matt, who are willing to keep WordPress relevant in the years to come.
He also pointed out Automattic’s long history of nurturing open-source projects. He believes that joining Automattic will benefit WPGraphQL users and developers building decoupled WordPress experiences.
“Automattic’s track record as a fantastic steward of open-source projects is well known, and I believe it’s the perfect home for WPGraphQL. This move will continue to keep WPGraphQL free and open source while bringing more visibility and contributions from the community.”, he said
Response From the Community
The community was excited about Jason’s move to join Automattic.
“WPGraphQL has always been and will continue to be free open-source software.”, Jason reassured the community.
