Matt Mullenweg, WordPress co-creator and longtime CEO of Automattic, told employees he had regained control of the WordPress.com parent company roughly two days after its board voted to place him on paid leave. The claim appeared in a Slack message seen by TechCrunch and confirmed by two sources, but Automattic has not verified it. Mullenweg said the board had voted to put him on leave and that CFO Mark Davies had become interim CEO. Davies' Slack account was later deactivated, while Automattic employees had not received confirmation from the board. Mullenweg said a blog post was forthcoming. The episode follows the September 9 board decision involving Davies, Ann Dunwoody, Toni Schneider and Sue Decker, although the reasons for the vote remain unknown. Mullenweg retained his board seat and has continued to challenge the decision publicly, including suggestions that Silver Lake, WP Engine's majority owner, was involved in an effort against him. The dispute adds uncertainty to Automattic's governance as it remains locked in litigation with WP Engine, has carried out workforce reductions and manages its relationship with the open-source WordPress project. WordPress.org leadership has said day-to-day operations have not been disrupted. The board's response and the effect on the WP Engine litigation remain the key issues to watch.