Skill Surge

Swap skills, share knowledge, and grow together on an AI-powered platform where learning is free and collaborative.

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🧠 Inspiration Learning today often involves expensive courses or time-consuming searches. Many people are eager to share their skills but lack the platform to connect with learners in a meaningful, non-commercial way. We wanted to build a peer-to-peer learning network where users teach what they know in exchange for learning what they want — all powered by AI to optimize matchmaking and guidance.

⚙️ What it does SkillSurge is an AI-enhanced skill swapping platform that allows users to: Sign up and create skill-based profiles Offer and request skills to learn/teach Get AI-powered matchmaking with ideal partners Chat securely with real-time messaging, file sharing, and Meet integration Use an AI chatbot that recommends tutorials and helps with queries Receive AI-based skill suggestions based on user interests Track all swap requests and give/receive ratings and reviews

🛠️ How we built it We used modern full-stack technologies with strong AI support: Frontend: Next.js 15, React 18, Tailwind CSS, Shadcn/UI, Lucide React Backend: Firebase (Auth + Firestore) Google Tools & Services: Google Firebase Studio, Gemini & Google Genkit Plugin, Google Meet, Gemini API Key, Google Photos, Google Docs, Google Maps, Google Youtube, Google Youtube Data APi v3, Google Firestore, Google Firestore Authentication, Database, Genkit AI: Google Gemini via Genkit flows (skillMatchmaking, suggestSkillsFromInterests, siteChatbotFlow) File Uploads: Cloudinary for chat and avatars Chat: Real-time with file, image, audio, and location sharing Deployment: Vercel for now

🧗 Challenges we ran into Managing Genkit AI flows across multiple tasks like matchmaking and chatbot logic Getting YouTube Data API to return quality, safe educational content Ensuring real-time chat works seamlessly across devices with file and media support Coordinating Firebase roles, authentication, and Firestore rules Handling user states and sessions securely while maintaining performance

🏆 Accomplishments that we're proud of Successfully integrated multiple AI flows that personalize learning and teaching experiences Created a clean, user-friendly UI that supports real-time collaboration Implemented a modular architecture that supports future expansion easily Completed secure, rich media chat with location and Meet integration Developed an AI chatbot that recommends YouTube tutorials with real-time previews

📚 What we learned How to integrate Google Gemini using Genkit for multi-purpose AI tasks How to structure a full-stack AI app using Next.js App Router with Firebase backend The power of React Hook Form + Zod for robust form validation Handling complex state and media handling in a real-time chat system Fine-tuning AI prompts and data filtering to return relevant educational videos

🚀 What's next for SkillSurge Add calendar sync with Google Calendar for scheduling swaps Build a mobile PWA version for smoother cross-device experience Introduce skill challenges, quizzes, and group learning Expand language support for international learners Enable in-app video calling using Google Meet, Daily.co or Jitsi Meet as a fallback Add gamification features like badges, levels, and leaderboards

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