The story of TianPan.co mirrors the evolution of web publishing itself - from simple HTML pages to today's AI-augmented content platforms. As we launch version 3, I want to share how we're reimagining what a modern publishing platform can be in the age of AI.

The Journey: From WordPress to AI-Native
Like many technical blogs, TianPan.co started humbly in 2009 as a WordPress site on a free VPS. The early days were simple: write, publish, repeat. But as technology evolved, so did our needs. Version 1 moved to Octopress and GitHub, embracing the developer-friendly approach of treating content as code. Version 2 brought modern web technologies with GraphQL, server-side rendering, and a React Native mobile app.
But the landscape has changed dramatically. AI isn't just a buzzword - it's transforming how we create, organize, and share knowledge. This realization led to Version 3, built around a radical idea: what if we designed a publishing system with AI at its core, not just as an add-on?
Version 3 breaks from traditional blogging platforms in several fundamental ways:
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Content as Data: Every piece of content is stored as markdown, making it instantly processable by AI systems. This isn't just about machine readability - it's about enabling AI to become an active participant in the content lifecycle.
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Distributed Publishing, Centralized Management: Content flows automatically from our central repository to multiple channels - Telegram, Discord, Twitter, and more. But unlike traditional multi-channel publishing, AI helps maintain consistency and optimize for each platform.
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Infrastructure Evolution: We moved from a basic 1 CPU/1GB RAM setup to a more robust infrastructure, not just for reliability but to support AI-powered features like real-time content analysis and automated editing.
The technical architecture reflects this AI-first approach:
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├── _inbox # AI-monitored draft space
├── notes # published English notes
├── notes-zh # published Chinese notes