So, what does this mean for your business, and how can these innovations help you create better, smarter digital experiences?

A closer look at Umbraco 16

Designed with people in mind Umbraco 16 arrives with a renewed focus on content editor experience and developer productivity.

The standout addition? The new Rich Text Editor, Tiptap, replacing TinyMCE. It offers a cleaner UI and greater flexibility for structured content creation, giving editors more control without overwhelming them. Combined with smarter permissions and improved management of content workflows, Umbraco 16 is setting the bar higher for usability.

As developers, we’re particularly pleased to see enhanced control over app settings, secrets, and deployment pipelines, all of which make maintaining large estates smoother and safer.

The power of composable architectures

We’re huge advocates of composable digital experience platforms (DXPs) at Shout. The newly announced Umbraco Compose is a game-changer for businesses managing content across multiple systems.

This SaaS tool enables you to orchestrate content from CMS, PIM, DAM, ERP, and CRM sources into a single, unified output. The result? Simplified workflows, reduced duplication, and a stronger foundation for delivering seamless, personalised digital experiences.

It’s still early days, with private beta access now open, but the direction of travel aligns perfectly with how we’re already helping our clients design and build flexible, API-driven solutions.

AI meets CMS

One of the most talked-about updates at Codegarden was the MCP (Management Command Protocol) Server. It provides a secure bridge between AI tools and your Umbraco estate, letting intelligent agents perform tasks like cleaning up unused content types, generating blog posts, or even creating complete content models on command.

While still in its infancy, this technology hints at a future where AI works alongside content teams, handling repetitive tasks and freeing people up for more creative, strategic work.

Why this matters

At Shout, we’ve long believed in helping our clients build robust, scalable digital platforms that aren’t just fit for today, they’re future-ready.

The advancements in Umbraco 16, Compose, and MCP align closely with the way we approach digital delivery:

  • Sustainable engineering practices that reduce technical debt.
  • Composable architectures that give you agility as your business grows.
  • AI-enhanced workflows that empower your teams.

We’re already exploring how these tools can help our clients move faster and deliver more meaningful customer experiences.

What’s next?

With Umbraco continuing to innovate, now’s the perfect time to ask: is your platform ready for what’s next?

If you’re thinking about upgrading, replatforming, or exploring composable DXPs, we’d love to help. Let’s chat about how these new tools could transform your digital strategy.