Intelligence Report

Automattic launches Spacefast to host and run vibe-coded apps

The WordPress.com owner is pitching an open, agent-agnostic backend for AI-built sites, putting it in competition with Lovable and Emergent.

INSIGHTEX Editorial Desk

2 min read

What happened

Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com, has launched Spacefast, a service for putting vibe-coded websites and apps into production, TechCrunch reported. The platform supplies the backend pieces such projects usually lack, among them databases, user authentication, file uploads, email and analytics, so that AI-generated code can run as a working site, app or service.

Users can link Spacefast to a range of AI agents and chatbots, including ChatGPT, Claude, Cursor and Amp, or start from a Git repository. The product is led by Batuhan İçöz, who built an early version, then called Stattic, during an internal hackathon earlier in the year while working on Automattic's messaging app Beeper. Automattic soft-launched it in September to collect feedback before the full release.

İçöz said that letting users pick their own agent sets Spacefast apart from Lovable, and that Automattic can easily add features such as analytics, WordPress integration and WooCommerce e-commerce. He also pitched it to enterprises whose marketing teams scatter landing pages across tools, and said he expects some users to churn.

Context

Spacefast arrives as publishers face falling traffic tied to AI chatbots and summaries, and İçöz acknowledged that some people now build sites with ChatGPT or Claude rather than WordPress. Figma, Canva and Notion have also released vibe-coding products. Automattic has had a turbulent stretch: its board briefly ousted CEO Matt Mullenweg before he regained control, the interim CFO left quickly, and layoffs began in October.

Cursor profile

SourceTechCrunch

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