The 2026 Web Stack: How Do You Improve AI? Add a Human.

AI can now build a website in minutes. So why would anyone still hire a web developer in 2026? Because the fastest way to improve AI is surprisingly simple: add a human.

After 20 years of building websites for Birmingham businesses, mostly on Joomla and WordPress, I’ve completely changed how I work. Every new website I build now uses a modern stack of Astro, Tailwind CSS, GitHub and Cloudflare, and every one is coded with Claude, Anthropic’s AI. Here’s what that means, why I’ve made the switch, and why it matters for your business.

Why I’ve changed how I build websites

For two decades, database-driven systems like Joomla and WordPress were the sensible choice for most business websites. They’re flexible, well supported and easy to update, and I’ve built hundreds of sites with them.

But the web has changed. Google now measures exactly how quickly your pages load and respond. Security threats are constant and automated. And increasingly, people find businesses through AI search tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google’s AI Overviews rather than a traditional list of links.

The question I kept asking was simple: what’s the best possible way to build a small business website today? The answer led me to a completely different set of tools.

The new stack at a glance

Every new website I build uses the same proven combination:

• Astro: the framework that builds your website
• HTML: clean, meaningful code that every browser, search engine and AI tool understands
• Tailwind CSS: the design system that keeps pages small and consistent
• GitHub: where every version of your website is safely stored
• Cloudflare: the global network that delivers your website to visitors
• Claude AI: the coding partner that helps me refine every detail, faster

Each tool does one job extremely well. Together, they produce websites that are fast, secure and easy to look after.

Astro: fast websites with no database

Astro is a modern web framework that builds every page of your website in advance. Instead of assembling pages from a database each time someone visits, the finished pages are ready and waiting.

What “no database” means for you

Traditional websites store your content in a database and use server code to build each page on request. That’s powerful, but it also creates moving parts that need maintaining, updating and protecting.

An Astro website has no database to hack, no admin login for bots to attack, and no server code running when someone visits. The most common ways websites get compromised simply don’t exist.

Why speed matters to Google

Google’s Core Web Vitals measure how quickly your pages load, how soon visitors can interact with them and how stable they are while loading. Slow websites rank lower and lose visitors.

Because Astro sends plain HTML with little or no JavaScript, pages load remarkably quickly, even on a mobile phone with a weak signal. That’s exactly what Google rewards.

The proof is this very website. On Google’s own PageSpeed Insights test, using its toughest mobile setting (a mid-range phone on a slow 4G connection), darrenhodson.co.uk scores 100 out of 100 for performance, accessibility, best practices and SEO. The page appears in 0.9 seconds, finishes loading in 1.7 seconds, and nothing jumps around or freezes while it loads. It also passes all three of Google’s new Agentic Browsing checks, which test whether AI assistants can read, understand and use a website on someone’s behalf. You can run the test yourself.

Tailwind CSS: lean, consistent design

Tailwind CSS is how I style every page. Instead of large, generic stylesheets, it includes only the styles your website actually uses. The result is smaller files, faster pages and a design that stays consistent from the home page to the smallest news article.

GitHub: every change saved, nothing lost

Every website I build is stored in GitHub, a system developers use worldwide to track changes to code. Every update is recorded with a full history.

If a change ever isn’t right, the previous version can be restored in moments. There’s no more worrying about a broken update or a lost backup.

Cloudflare: global, secure and reliable hosting

Cloudflare runs one of the largest networks in the world. Your website is delivered from data centres close to each visitor, rather than from a single server somewhere.

That means fast loading wherever your customers are, built-in protection against attacks, and free SSL certificates that renew themselves. When you update your website, the changes go live automatically within minutes.

Your business email stays with Krystal, an independent UK host powered by renewable energy, with serious spam protection. You can read more on my web hosting page.

Why I’m moving away from WordPress and Joomla

This isn’t a criticism of WordPress or Joomla. Both are excellent at what they do, and I’ve relied on Joomla for most of my career. But for most small business websites, they bring more complexity than they need to.

The maintenance treadmill

Database-driven websites need regular core updates, plugin and extension updates, and occasional major version upgrades. When Joomla 3 reached end of life in 2023, every Joomla 3 site had to be migrated to stay supported. Updates sometimes clash with each other, and every one needs checking.

With an Astro website, there’s no core software to patch and no plugins to fall out of date. Your website simply keeps working, and your hosting fee goes on support rather than firefighting.

Security: the database and login problem

Most website attacks target the same things: the admin login page, the database, and out-of-date plugins. Popular platforms are the biggest targets precisely because they’re so widely used.

Remove the database and the login page, and you remove most of the risk. It’s security by design rather than security by constant patching.

When WordPress or Joomla is still the right choice

There are still good reasons to use a traditional content management system, particularly for large websites with lots of people editing content every day, membership areas or complex directories. With 20 years of Joomla experience, I still build, upgrade and look after Joomla websites where they’re the right fit.

My promise is simple: I’ll always recommend what’s right for your business, not just what’s newest.

How do you improve AI? Add a human.

This is the part of my workflow that has changed most, and it’s the part I’m most excited about.

What Claude does brilliantly

I code every website with Claude, Anthropic’s AI. It’s remarkable, from the design you see to the code working underneath. It writes clean code at speed, suggests improvements, helps draft clear copy and catches mistakes quickly. Tasks that once took days now take hours.

What 20 years of experience adds

AI is at its best with the right direction. After 20 years, I know what to ask for, what to test and what Google and AI search reward. I know how real customers use websites, what makes them pick up the phone, and which details quietly cost businesses enquiries.

Every page is checked by me before it goes live: page speed, mobile layout, accessibility, search details and every contact form. Claude brings the speed and precision; experience decides what’s good enough to ship. It’s the best of both.

Built for AI search as well as Google

More people now ask AI tools for recommendations: “Who’s a good web designer in Birmingham?” or “Best café near me?” Being understood by those tools is becoming as important as ranking on Google.

This is sometimes called GEO, or generative engine optimisation. Every website I build includes:

• Semantic HTML: proper headings and structure that machines can follow
• Structured data: behind-the-scenes information that tells Google and AI tools exactly who you are, what you do and where
• Clear, well-organised copy: pages that answer real customer questions in plain English
• Fast, lightweight pages: easy for search engines and AI crawlers to read

What this means for your business

Put simply, the new stack gives you:

• A faster website that Google rewards and visitors enjoy using
• Stronger security with no database or login page to attack
• Lower maintenance with no plugins or core updates to worry about
• Peace of mind with every change saved and reversible
• Better visibility in Google and AI search results
• A real person who built it, knows it and answers the phone

You can see the stack in action on recent projects such as Serenity Yoga + Pilates and Darren Hodson [Blair], and on this very website.

Thinking about a new website?

Whether you’re starting from scratch, stuck with a slow WordPress site, or wondering whether your Joomla website needs an upgrade, I’m happy to give you an honest opinion in plain English. No jargon, no hard sell, and I’ll never oversell you something you don’t need.

Take a look at my website packages, or get in touch on 07859 925 041 or [email protected].