[HHalvi]

If you want to be a tech lead and not someone's job all you have to do is go out of your way to own the things you are directly working on and go out of your way to help those who are working with you to achieve shared common goals. Once you have done this multiple times, its easy to schedule a meeting with your management and pitch the idea of you doing the same and more but this time with Tech Lead's title and if that doesn't happen go look out for opportunities outside your company.

[BuckRogers]

It won’t happen. People that do this are generally mocked as useful fools, it’s a “Thanks, for setting your new expectations! Now enjoy living up to them for zero additional pay. When you get tired of it we’ll be sure to punish you.”

The OP should just offer to management to be a co-tech lead for additional pay, citing the belief that he can help and otherwise do nothing nefarious or antisocial and look elsewhere for work. He’s already either viewed favorably or not by upper management, which will determine this. It’s largely not performance based, he has to be competent, but liked. People won’t agree with my idea because it’s not “the ideal world and way it’s supposed to be“, but it’s based off my very hard earned experience.

Two things are true in this industry, no one wants to pay and it’s not a meritocracy. That’s all smoke and mirrors, it’s pure capitalism.