India's digital growth over the last decade has been rapid. Millions of people, from students in small towns to grandparents in cities, have gained access to the internet. However, this swift onboarding has created a significant gap: digital literacy hasn't grown at the same pace as digital access. Every day, people are targeted by UPI scams, fake job offers, phishing links, and AI-generated misinformation.
Most technology websites focus on hardware reviews, smartphone comparisons, or high-end developer news. There is a lack of simple, direct resources that focus on digital safety and foundational technology concepts for everyday users. That is why I built Tech, a platform designed to bridge this gap.
The Core Problem
When my own relatives started receiving fraudulent text messages mimicking bank alerts, I realized how vulnerable the average user is. They don't need to know the clock speed of the latest processor; they need to know how to spot a fake website or how to verify a UPI request.
With the sudden rise of artificial intelligence, there is also a mix of curiosity and fear. People want to use AI tools for learning and work, but they don't know where to start or how to navigate these platforms safely. The main goal of Tech is to provide clear, jargon-free explainers on AI tools, timely scam alerts, and relevant tech news that directly impacts daily life.
The Tech Stack and Architecture
To build a platform aimed at a wide audience across India, performance and accessibility were the primary technical goals. Many users access the web on budget smartphones with unstable 3G or 4G connections.
Here is the stack I chose:
- Frontend: Next.js with static site generation (SSG). This ensures pages are pre-rendered and load almost instantly, even on poor connections.
- Styling: Pure CSS with a mobile-first design pattern. I avoided heavy UI libraries to keep the bundle size as small as possible.
- Content Management: Markdown-based files stored in the repository. This allows for quick edits and version control without the overhead of querying a database for every page load.
- Hosting & CDN: Vercel combined with global edge caching to ensure low latency across different regions in India.
Technical Challenges
The biggest technical challenge was optimizing the page weight. Every kilobyte of Javascript deferred is a win for a user on a low-end device. I spent a significant amount of time audit-profiling the site, removing unnecessary dependencies, and lazy-loading non-critical resources.
Another challenge was designing a layout that remains highly readable on small, low-resolution screens. I implemented scalable typography using CSS container queries and custom properties, ensuring that text is legible even on older smartphone models.
Lessons Learned
Building this site taught me that technical complexity is not always the answer. When building for the next billion users, simplicity in both code and design is the most critical feature.
- Performance is accessibility: If a safety warning page takes ten seconds to load on a slow connection, it fails its purpose. Speed is a functional requirement, not just a metric.
- Jargon-free writing is hard: Translating complex terms like "phishing" or "generative adversarial networks" into straightforward terms requires deep understanding. The UX must support this simplicity.
Try it out
The website is fully live and open to everyone. You can explore the explainers and active alerts at https://tech.getinfotoyou.com.
If you have feedback on how to make the content more accessible, or if you want to suggest a topic that needs a simple explainer, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
