First thing I'd say is that tech lead is role, not necessarily a job title.
Second, tech lead is probably the highest position you get to without choosing management vs technical career paths.
You can grow in technical depth and authority without managing more teams, and still stay in connection with the code; or you can try and enable teams to succeed, and steer things towards the business objectives, and spend a lot less time coding. But most companies (at least those that try and retain tech talent) will force you to choose, or choose for you.
Second, tech lead is probably the highest position you get to without choosing management vs technical career paths.
You can grow in technical depth and authority without managing more teams, and still stay in connection with the code; or you can try and enable teams to succeed, and steer things towards the business objectives, and spend a lot less time coding. But most companies (at least those that try and retain tech talent) will force you to choose, or choose for you.