{"id":89520,"date":"2026-09-07T06:59:33","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T06:59:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wpstaq.com\/?p=89520"},"modified":"2026-09-09T12:54:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T12:54:59","slug":"the-staq-ai-site-builder-for-wordpress-is-now-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wpstaq.com\/hk\/the-staq-ai-site-builder-for-wordpress-is-now-out\/","title":{"rendered":"The New Staq AI Site Builder for WordPress"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Announcement \u00b7 AI Site Studio<\/p>\n

This launch means a lot to me. This is not a standard \u201cI am excited to release this feature\u201d post. It is more than 12 years in the making. You will understand why after you read this.\u00a0Launching 12 September 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

Emmanuel Khoury, Co-founder<\/span>
\n7 September 2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

We tried building an AI site builder over 12 years ago<\/h2>\n

In 2014, Nizar Ashkar and I were already trying to build an AI site builder. We lodged an R&D claim in Australia on 2 November 2015 to claim back that spend. Below is a snippet of what we were trying to build 12 years ago.<\/p>\n

\"Snippet<\/figure>\n

A snippet from the R&D claim. This is what we were trying to build 12 years ago.<\/p>\n

It was not AI in the way we know it today. By today\u2019s measures it was basic. It worked, but it kept breaking. We kept building until 2017. Then Nizar and I were planning a soft launch. After three years, we looked at each other and said, \u201cthis does not feel right to launch.\u201d In 15 minutes we abandoned the project and moved on.<\/p>\n

Next on the agenda was how hard it had become to deploy, host, and manage WordPress after our former agency grew past 150 sites. Nizar said he had a solution. Staq was born that same day.<\/p>\n

We knew that without proper hosting, the AI site builder would never work. We were also too early. The technology was not truly there yet.<\/p>\n

Fast forward to 2025 – 2026<\/h2>\n

In 2025, after watching how AI had evolved, Nizar and I agreed to look at it again. Architecture was the key. We knew how we failed the first time. We wanted a scalable, predictable builder that deploys as native page-builder widgets, and that could grow to more builders later. Plus, we had our hosting infrastructure in place. Actually, as you know as a Staq user, it goes way beyond hosting infrastructure. It’s also how efficient agencies fix their WordPress Ops at scale.<\/p>\n

We built, tested, and trained that architecture from 2025 through June 2026. We also brought in extra people to make it happen.<\/p>\n

The vision, with agency workflow in mind<\/h3>\n

Why a form, not a chatbot<\/h4>\n

We did not want a chatbot like everyone else. A chatbot assumes everyone who uses the builder knows how to layer prompts. We tried giving as little information as possible. We also tried giving five times more than the form accepts today. Too little data produced a poor result. Too much data did not help much. The middle ground is the form. More on that below.<\/p>\n

Why agencies<\/h4>\n

We built this around agency workflow, and we are expanding that in the next release. Agencies will white-label a preview and share it with clients before it deploys into WordPress, then receive feedback. Staq is built for agency workflows. The AI site builder should stay true to that.<\/p>\n

AI can replace many agency tasks. You still need an expert to finish the job. You still need creative input and strategy. I also think local agencies serving their local communities become more relevant, and freelancer platforms like Upwork become less so. That is my prediction.<\/p>\n

Why Elementor and Divi<\/h4>\n

Our initial launch will support both Elementor and Divi. Why? Over 70% of Staq-hosted sites that use a page builder use those two. We also looked at the wider WordPress market. Elementor and Divi were the two most used. Gutenberg came third, under 5%, then Beaver Builder, Bricks, and WPBakery.<\/p>\n

\"Nizar
Nizar and I at WordCamp Sydney in 2024.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How the builder actually works. The brief.<\/h2>\n

AI is the tool. WordPress is the framework. Staq is the infrastructure. Based on experience, you need all three to make it work efficiently.<\/p>\n

Here is the product, step by step.<\/p>\n

1. Setup. How you start, and where it deploys<\/h3>\n

You pick Start from Scratch<\/strong> or Rebuild an Existing Website<\/strong>. Scratch means you describe the business and AI generates a new site. Rebuild means we analyse a live site and use it as the starting brief.<\/p>\n

Then you pick the page builder. Elementor<\/strong> or Divi 5<\/strong>, today. It is where the finished page lands as native widgets.\u00a0Gutenberg, WPBakery, Beaver Builder, and Bricks are next.<\/p>\n

\n
\"AI
Step 1. Start from scratch or rebuild a live site. Deploy into Elementor or Divi 5.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

2. Business. Tell us who they are<\/h3>\n

Business name. Phone Number and Address along with your logo. Industry. A real description: what they do, who they serve, how long they have been around, what the page must mention. Then services. The more you put here, the less generic the draft.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Business
Step 2. The AI learns the business before it writes a line.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

3. Audience. Who it is for, and what they should do<\/h3>\n

You set the main job of the page: lead generation, bookings, online sales, showcase, content, or donations. You describe the target audience. You pick local, regional, national, or global. You write the main call to action, like Book a Free Call. This is how we stop the AI guessing.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Audience
Step 3. Job of the page, audience, market, and the button you want them to press.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

4. Look. Tone, style, space, type<\/h3>\n

Tone of voice: professional, bold, friendly, authoritative, luxury, or minimal. Visual style from tech modern through artisan warm to luxury premium, or let AI decide from the industry. Spacing: generous, balanced, or compact. Heading font: you pick it, or AI picks it.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Look
Step 4. The site should look like the brand, not like every other AI template.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

5. Structure. The page map<\/h3>\n

You tick the sections: hero, problem, promise, solution, process, proof, FAQ, gallery, location, video, final CTA. Add a custom one if you need it, like a team section. Then tell the AI anything else: words to avoid, must-have lines, competitors to differ from. Then you generate.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Page
Step 5. You pick the sections. You are not stuck with a fixed template.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

The AI-generated website<\/h2>\n

We did not want every site to look like AI designed it. I think we did well there. They do not look AI-generated.<\/p>\n

We wanted a builder, before WordPress, where you can ask AI for help and still do things by hand.<\/p>\n

Click a headline. Open Style. Set heading level, font size, weight, colour, and alignment yourself. Drag 72px if you want 72px. The draft is yours.<\/p>\n

Or open Ask AI on that same element. Type a plain instruction, like create an alternative heading. Or hit a shortcut: make this punchier, shorten this to one line, make the tone more formal. Only the selected element moves. The rest of the page stays put.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Style
Fingertips. Font, size, colour, alignment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Ask
Ask AI. One element. Plain English.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Prompt and create a new row<\/h3>\n

If you want a new row, click Add Section<\/strong> and prompt it.<\/p>\n

\"Add
Add Section. Type the row you want.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Based on that prompt, this is what it delivered.<\/p>\n

\"The
The new row, generated from that prompt.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Images you can generate, or refine<\/h3>\n

Upload, generate, pull from the library, or click Refine. Type what should change. Example: change the car interior from red to green. The original stays until you accept it. You do not wait on a photographer to start.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Refine
Refine. A short instruction. The rest of the shot stays yours.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Then deploy into Staq, WordPress, and your page builder<\/h3>\n

Deploy to WordPress. The page becomes native Elementor or Divi 5 modules on Managed Hosting for WordPress, powered by Staq. Speed, security, staging, backups. Same platform. Other AI builders skip this. Self-hosting leaves it to you.<\/p>\n

I asked ChatGPT to invent 12 fictitious businesses, with logos. Then I fed each fake business into Staq AI. A five-page website, from first brief through deploy onto Staq and into Elementor or Divi, took me less than 20 minutes start to finish for each website.<\/p>\n

You can see the portfolio of designs<\/a> for each of those fictitious businesses. Click any link. It is a real website, not a mockup.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next, and I cannot wait<\/h2>\n