WordPress through the years: Insights on Themes, Block editors, and AI with Hendrik Luehrsen
By Karolina Szor
In this episode we explore the changes in the WordPress ecosystem with our guest, Hendrik Luehrsen. Hendrik, a veteran WordPress developer, brings invaluable insights from his extensive experience. We discuss the evolution of WordPress, the rise and fall of WordPress themes, and explore the impact of new technologies like AI on the ecosystem. Hendrik shares his thoughts on full site editing, Gutenberg, and the strategic shifts his agency has made in WordPress development.
Hendrik is the founder of Luehrsen Heinrich, a Munich-based agency specializing in digital publishing and custom WordPress development. With nearly 20 years of experience, he’s been an active voice in the German-speaking WordPress community, advocating for open-source practices and modern workflows. Known for his technical depth and candid opinions, Hendrik brings both strategic and engineering perspectives to the table.
With a sharp sense of humor and unfiltered perspective, Hendrik reveals how agencies can adapt to stay relevant, even as the ground under WordPress keeps shifting.
How WordPress Evolved from Blogging Tool to Block-Based CMS
Hendrik’s WordPress journey began in 2006 when content management systems were still relatively limited. WordPress, from the outset, impressed him with its extensibility, growing plugin architecture, and strong open-source community. For a developer with a PHP background, it offered a rare balance of flexibility and structure – powerful enough to customize, yet intuitive enough to build fast. That early promise of developer empowerment became a foundational theme throughout his career.
But the real turning point, he says, came when WordPress introduced more editorial structure. The arrival of custom menus allowed creators to separate content from layout, which Hendrik sees as the platform’s first real move toward modern content management.
The ecosystem around WordPress is evolving very fast. Block editors, full site editing—these are big steps in the right direction.
Fast forward to today, and full site editing (FSE) marks another transformative moment. While Gutenberg’s rollout wasn’t without friction, Hendrik believes FSE puts more power in the hands of non-technical users and helps WordPress compete with modern no-code platforms.
The Future of WordPress Themes: What Agencies Should Know
In Hendrik’s view, the traditional theme market – especially the bloated, hard-to-maintain ones on ThemeForest – is already on life support. Instead, he envisions a future where starter themes or design systems take over, particularly with block-based builds. His agency now heavily leans on a reusable component library and aligns closely with the Gutenberg philosophy: structure-first, flexibility later.
What does this mean for agencies? A shift from pixel-perfect static mockups to dynamic, content-aware design systems. It also means more collaboration between devs and designers in tools like Figma.
The question is not whether Themes are dying. It’s whether your agency is ready for what comes next.
That shift isn’t just about tools – it’s an cultural and organizational change. And readiness today means embracing modular design, version-controlled design systems, and a client workflow that starts with blocks – not mockups.
How Smart Agencies Use AI in WordPress Development
Hendrik isn’t interested in AI for its trend value – he’s focused on where it genuinely makes a difference. He sees its influence as quiet but foundational, woven into the way developers save time, improve quality, and streamline workflows. For him, AI is less about spectacle, and more about strengthening the craft.
From using AI to accelerate boilerplate code to ideating content within the WordPress editor, he sees value in pragmatic use cases. However, he’s cautious about over-automating creativity.
AI is like a power tool—it can speed you up, but it won’t replace your judgment or craft.
For agencies, the big opportunity is in time-saving and QA: linting code, accessibility checks, pattern generation – all faster with the right AI tools. But Hendrik also warns about the risks of AI-generated junk flooding the internet.
WordPress vs Webflow and Wix: Which Platform Wins in 2025?
Wix, Webflow, Squarespace – the new kids on the block have made site creation easier for non-technical users. Hendrik respects that. But he argues that WordPress’s strength lies in its complexity and extensibility.
WordPress can be anything you want—if you know how to bend it.
For enterprise and mid-market clients, that flexibility still makes it a platform of choice. And unlike Webflow, it’s open-source and self-hosted, which matters for agencies who value full control. That said, WordPress hasn’t captured the creator economy like TikTok or Instagram has. Experiments like Google’s Web Stories didn’t stick, and the platform’s publishing model still feels article-first.
Why Successful WordPress Projects Don’t End at Launch
This transition wasn’t instant, but it allowed the agency to scale smarter and retain clients longer. The days of “build and forget” are over – now it’s about lifecycle strategy.
You can’t build WordPress sites in 2025 the same way you did in 2015. And you shouldn’t want to.
For Hendrik, this shift reflects a maturing mindset in the WordPress space. Projects don’t end at launch – they evolve, adapt, and extend. Agencies that embrace iterative collaboration and long-term client relationships aren’t just delivering websites – they’re building digital infrastructure that lasts.
4 Ways WordPress Agencies Should Adapt in 2025
At Luehrsen Heinrich, Hendrik’s agency, they’ve restructured around a few core principles:
- Build less, standardize more: Fewer custom themes, more reusable components
- Design in the browser: Skip the full mockup phase, focus on content-aware modules
- Train clients early: Empower editors through better onboarding and structured content
- Integrate AI intentionally: Use it where it counts, avoid buzzword traps
Full episode with Hendrik Leuhrsen
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