I’m currently building an AI-powered EdTech platform designed to deliver personalized learning experiences for middle and high school students using generative AI. To lay the groundwork, I wanted to quickly prototype and deploy a simple public-facing site that could evolve into a dynamic product interface over time. I needed something fast, flexible, and production-ready—but lightweight enough to get up and running in an afternoon.
I chose to build the site using Replit for prototyping, GitHub for version control, and Vercel for deployment, paired with Next.js for its frontend power and built-in routing. I also used Tailwind CSS for styling, which gave me a fast, utility-first way to keep design clean and responsive without writing custom CSS from scratch. This stack gave me the speed and structure I needed to go from idea to live product in a matter of hours.
Step 1: Build a Prototype with Replit
Replit is a browser-based development environment that lets you start coding instantly, without any installation. It’s ideal for prototyping because it removes all the setup overhead. You don’t need to configure a development server, worry about system dependencies, or even leave your browser.
To begin, I created a new Replit project using the “Node.js” template. While Replit doesn’t have a built-in Next.js template, you can easily bootstrap a Next.js app within any Node environment. I initialized a new Next.js project with TypeScript support using:
npx create-next-app@latest my-site –typescript
Next.js is my go-to React framework for several reasons: it offers file-based routing, automatic code splitting, server-side rendering, and a great developer experience out of the box. Using it within Replit meant I could structure my app cleanly from the start.
After setting up the framework, I added the Tailwind CSS. You can add a Tailwind CSS for styling by typing the following commands:
npm install -D tailwindcss postcss autoprefixer
npx tailwindcss init -p
Tailwind CSS is a utility-first framework that lets you design directly in your HTML and JSX using pre-built classes. I configured Tailwind by extending its default theme and customizing the globals.css file. Within 20 minutes, I had a responsive landing page with a headline, a short bio, and a “Now” section powered by a simple JSON feed. I kept the layout minimal, using utility classes like flex, gap-4, and text-xl to handle spacing, typography, and responsive breakpoints.
Why Replit worked well:
- It provides instant feedback without dev server setup.
- There are no local tooling requirements.
- It is great for quick iterations and front-end focused work.
Once I was happy with the structure and styling, it was time to move from prototyping to production.
Step 2: Implement Version Control with GitHub
To prepare for deployment and version control, I exported my Replit project and pushed it to GitHub. Replit allows you to download your codebase as a .zip file or sync it with GitHub directly using their Git integration. I chose to download the project and initialize a local Git repository.
Here’s what I did:
- Download the project from Replit.
- Initialize a Git repository locally through the following commands:
git init
git add .
git commit -m “Initial commit”
- Create a new repository on GitHub and link it:
git remote add origin https://github.com/username/my-site.git
git push -u origin main
With my code now in GitHub, I was ready to connect it to Vercel for seamless deployment. GitHub also gave me version control, branch management, and an easy way to collaborate or revert changes.
Step 3: Deploy my Project on Vercel
Vercel is optimized for frontend frameworks like Next.js, which makes it a perfect deployment choice. Once my code was on GitHub, I signed into my Vercel account and selected New Project.
Vercel prompted me to import a GitHub repository. I selected my Next.js project, and Vercel automatically detected the framework, installed the necessary dependencies, and provided configuration defaults. I didn’t have to manually write a build command or configure an environment.
After clicking Deploy, Vercel built the project and gave me a live preview URL.
What I liked most about Vercel:
- Zero configuration—no YAML files, no build scripts
- Auto-generated preview links for every branch
- Instant deployment and staging URLs
- One-click domain connection with HTTPS and SSL
To set up a custom domain, I went into the Vercel dashboard, clicked Settings, and followed the steps to point my domain’s DNS to Vercel’s nameservers. SSL was handled automatically.
I also appreciated the built-in analytics, which gave me real-time insights into page views, latency, and geography—without needing to configure a third-party tool like Google Analytics. This helped validate initial user interest and performance benchmarks.
Step 4: Add the Dynamic Content
To make the site feel more alive, I added a dynamic “Now” page that pulled structured content from a remote JSON file. This allowed me to decouple static layout from changing content and made it easy to update my site without triggering a redeploy.
Here’s how you can add dynamic content using Next.js’s static site generation (SSG):
- Create a JSON file hosted on a public URL (like GitHub Pages or your own endpoint).
- Use getStaticProps() to fetch the data and pass it into your component as shown in the following example:
export async function getStaticProps() {
const res = await fetch(‘https://example.com/now.json’)
const nowData = await res.json()
return {
props: {
now: nowData,
},
revalidate: 3600, // Update every hour
}
}
This function tells Next.js to rebuild the page every hour if new content is available. I kept the JSON simple, just a title, timestamp, and short description. For future iterations, I plan to plug into a headless CMS like Sanity or Contentful.
To further improve user experience, I added subtle page transitions and element animations using Framer Motion. This gave the interface a more polished, app-like feel without significantly increasing the JavaScript bundle size.
Development Workflow Diagram
The diagram below illustrates the streamlined workflow I used to go from idea to live deployment:
Why This Stack Works for Builders
This project reminded me how powerful the modern web ecosystem is. I didn’t waste time wrestling with build tools or deployment environments. I just built.
- Replit removed the friction of having to set up a project and built the prototype.
- Next.js provided structure and flexibility.
- Tailwind accelerated styling without adding complexity.
- GitHub enabled version control and collaboration.
- Vercel handled deployment, previews, and production optimization.
It’s the kind of streamlined stack that encourages experimentation. For developers launching side projects, early-stage startups, or educators like me exploring AI-powered learning platforms, this workflow offers an incredibly fast path to validation.
What’s Next
This simple site is just the beginning. I plan to expand the platform with:
- AI-enhanced learning modules powered by large language models
- Edge functions for secure, real-time interactivity
- Serverless APIs for onboarding, feedback collection, and lesson delivery
- A headless CMS to allow dynamic lesson authoring and versioning
Final Thoughts
Modern tools should disappear into the background and let creativity take the lead. This project—from Replit to GitHub to Vercel—reminded me that the best developer experiences are the ones that feel effortless. I was able to focus on the product, not the pipeline, and that’s exactly what makes this tech stack so empowering.
Constanze Kratel 
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