// THE 4AM JOURNAL · ISSUE 23 · APRIL 2026
Journal.
// 10 PIECES
// ONE EMAIL · MONTHLY
// ALL PIECES
10 SHOWING
- // ENGINEERING8 MINWhy we
2026-04-18
Why we still build in Next — four years later.
An honest audit after four years, eleven rewrites and one almost-migration to Astro that we talked ourselves out of.
@kavya
- // CRAFT6 MIN
2026-04-02
Designing for the aunty.
The 62-year-old laundromat owner who approves every design decision. And why every studio should have one.
@arjun
- // NICHES7 MIN
2026-03-22
How we pick the 18th niche.
Seventeen niches took eleven years. The eighteenth is coming. Here's the one-sheet we use to decide.
@meera
- // PRICING4 MIN
2026-03-10
Why we price in rupees first.
A surprising number of Indian studios quote in dollars by default. A short note on why we don't.
@rohan
- // ENGINEERING11 MIN
2026-02-27
Our Hostinger VPS setup, warts and all.
Why we moved off Vercel, what we rebuilt in PM2 and Caddy, and the one Tuesday it nearly killed us.
@kavya
- // BUILDING IN PUBLIC6 MIN
2026-02-14
Small team, on purpose.
We've turned down funding twice. Here's the math on why staying at four people is the best product decision we've made.
@arjun
- // ENGINEERING9 MIN
2026-01-30
Flutter vs React Native, three years later.
We benchmarked both in 2022 and picked Flutter. The gap has only widened. A short post-mortem.
@kavya
- // BUILDING IN PUBLIC5 MIN
2026-01-12
A ₹14L quote we turned down.
The client was serious. The brief was clear. We still said no. A note on why scope discipline is a product decision.
@rohan
- // CRAFT5 MIN
2025-12-20
WhatsApp is the CMS.
Half our clients update their website through a WhatsApp message to Rohan. It's not a feature — it's the product.
@rohan
- // BUILDING IN PUBLIC4 MIN
2025-12-04
The 4AM ritual.
Why the studio is called 4AM Tech. And why we still show up at that hour, eleven years in.
@arjun
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// THE ARCHIVE
Every piece, by year.
2026// 8 PIECES
- 2026-04-18// ENGINEERINGWhy we still build in Next — four years later.
- 2026-04-02// CRAFTDesigning for the aunty.
- 2026-03-22// NICHESHow we pick the 18th niche.
- 2026-03-10// PRICINGWhy we price in rupees first.
- 2026-02-27// ENGINEERINGOur Hostinger VPS setup, warts and all.
- 2026-02-14// BUILDING IN PUBLICSmall team, on purpose.
- 2026-01-30// ENGINEERINGFlutter vs React Native, three years later.
- 2026-01-12// BUILDING IN PUBLICA ₹14L quote we turned down.
// EDITORIAL NOTE
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