WordPress cofounder Matt Mullenweg is buying Stewart Brand’s 1912 Sausalito houseboat; Mirene was once a gasoline schooner and later became a restored home on the water

Matt Mullenweg, the cofounder of WordPress and chief executive of Automattic, is set to acquire Mirene, a historic houseboat that has been home to Whole Earth Catalog creator Stewart Brand and his partner, Ryan Phelan, for decades. Built in Coos Bay, Oregon, and completed in 1912, Mirene was originally a gasoline schooner intended to serve canneries in Alaska. It was converted into a diesel tugboat in the 1930s. Mullenweg confirmed in a September 11 blog post that he had made an offer for the vessel, and The San Francisco Standard reported on September 16 that the deal was under contract. The purchase also involves the couple’s smaller houseboat, although the agreed price for the vessels has not been disclosed. For Brand and Phelan, the planned sale marks the end of a long chapter shaped by restoration, life on the water and their connection to Sausalito’s distinctive houseboat community.A century-old tugboat with an unusual historyMirene is no ordinary houseboat. Brand and Phelan acquired the vessel in the early 1980s and spent decades restoring it, adapting it into a home while retaining its ability to sail. Its history and seaworthiness distinguish it from the stationary houseboats around it. According to The San Francisco Standard, Mirene is the only houseboat in Sausalito permitted to leave its dock. The couple spent years restoring and adapting the vessel for life on the water. Its working-boat origins remain part of its character, setting it apart from the stationary houseboats around it.The vessel also carries a piece of music lore. According to The San Francisco Standard, a wooden table added by the couple is supposedly where Otis Redding sat while writing “(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay” during a stay on a nearby houseboat. The anecdote adds to Mirene’s appeal, although the precise connection between the table and the song remains a reported story rather than an independently established fact. The smaller houseboat included in the planned transaction offers a different arrangement. Unlike Mirene, the smaller houseboat is stationary. The San Francisco Standard described it as having a well-lit living area. Mullenweg has said he hopes to blog from Mirene’s kitchen table, making the vessel both a place to live and a setting for his writing. In an earlier interview with The San Francisco Standard in November 2025, Phelan discussed the sense of loss associated with parting with the vessel.From $1.8 million to a $1 million asking priceThe planned sale followed an extended period on the market. Mirene was initially listed for $1.8 million before its asking price was reduced by $100,000 in July. In August, the price fell again to $1 million. The smaller houseboat’s asking price also fell from $700,000 to $450,000, according to its listing. The reductions did not establish the final sale price. When The San Francisco Standard reported the deal on September 16, the transaction was under contract, and the parties had not disclosed the amount agreed upon.Compass real estate agent Steve Sekhon told the publication that the boats had attracted no offers for almost a year, despite their refurbished condition. He said the price reduction helped bring the listings greater visibility. The report also described improving activity in the local houseboat market, with sales generally closing slightly below asking prices. The smaller vessel was described by real estate agent Steve Sekhon as a potential privacy buffer for the buyer of Mirene or a separate waterfront retreat for someone seeking a home in the Sausalito area. For a buyer interested in the area’s houseboat lifestyle, the two properties offer different ways to experience it: one aboard a vessel with a history of sailing, the other in a stationary home on the water.A houseboat purchase amid upheaval at AutomatticThe purchase comes as Mullenweg navigates a period of corporate turmoil. In September, Automattic’s board voted to place him on paid leave as CEO, temporarily naming chief financial officer Mark Davies as interim chief executive. Mullenweg returned to the role roughly 33 hours later, after the attempted leadership change unravelled. The attempted leadership change was followed by the departure of directors involved in the dispute, with those departures reported around September 14. Automattic announced a new board on September 25, according to TechCrunch. Automattic is the parent company of WordPress.com, Tumblr and WooCommerce, among other businesses.Despite the disruption, Mullenweg has publicly embraced the prospect of taking on Mirene. In his September 11 blog post, Mullenweg wrote about the prospect of owning the vessel and the lessons he expected to learn from maintaining it. He also wrote that he hoped to do a lot of blogging from the kitchen table. Brand and Phelan now live primarily on a waterfront property in Petaluma, while Phelan has also bought another Sausalito houseboat, allowing her to maintain a connection with the community. Mullenweg has expressed the hope that he can eventually pass Mirene on to another steward decades from now.For now, the proposed sale brings together two people with an interest in independent publishing and the unconventional spaces in which creative work happens. If completed, the transaction will give Mullenweg a historic vessel shaped by more than a century of use, as well as a new place to write and live on the water. Brand, meanwhile, has said he expects the boat to bring its new owner good luck.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.