The whole internet called him an AI cheater, but a Silicon Valley venture capital firm invested $120 million in him instead. This generation of VCs just loves crazy entrepreneurs.
Raise $15 million through "cheating"!
Remember Roy Lee, the guy who was expelled from Columbia University?
He landed offers from tech giants like Amazon and Meta with the help of AI. However, he was summoned to a hearing. He simply said "I'm out", bought a one - way ticket to California, declared that "software engineers will be obsolete within two years", and then dropped out of school without hesitation.
Neel Shanmugam (left), co - founder of Cluely, Roy Lee (middle), Alex Chen (right)
Now, far from fading away, this guy has entered an alternative AI startup track under the guise of "cheating"!
The AI company Cluely he founded has a bold slogan:
Cheat At Everything. (Cheat in everything.)
From interview cheating, exam cheating, to job hunting, writing papers, bidding, resume writing, and coding, Cluely focuses on "helping you pass all life's tests with AI".
Just recently, top Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) led Cluely's seed - round financing with a total investment of $15 million, pushing the company's valuation to $120 million.
Roy Lee has a very radical understanding of "future tools". Cluely represents an extreme productivity tool - humans no longer rely on themselves, but on strategies, systems, and AI.
Is life a game, all about "cheating"?
Initially, Cluely was just a small tool for "cracking" technical interviews.
Roy Lee used it to get offers from Amazon, Meta, TikTok, and Capital One.
But after publicly introducing this tool online, he was blacklisted by big companies and expelled from Columbia University.
However, he soon realized that this technology was far more than just a "cheating tool" - it might actually foreshadow the future way of interaction between humans and AI.
It is reported that Cluely has only a few full - time employees.
Lee said that after the financing, Cluely will further increase its marketing investment, aiming for 100 million video views. They also plan to recruit 50 "growth interns" to post on Douyin every day.
Ultimately, they are betting on attention. Lee said: "At some point, we may need to rein it in, but I think the culture has changed."
This startup believes that traditional marketing channels like TV are no longer important:
No one watches TV anymore, and commercial advertising is dead. Now, "viral marketing" is in vogue.
Lee admitted that many people are skeptical about the company. "No one knows what will happen when 50% of the world loves you and 50% hates you," he said. "This is our bet."
Now, Cluely is widely used in various scenarios such as sales calls, meetings, and recruitment.
Is breaking the rules the key to unlocking success?
Investors find the story of Roy Lee, the founder of Cluely, very legendary:
He developed the interview programming cheating tool Interview Coder,
Hired 50 interns to create a popular "cheating artifact",
And his dramatic dropout from Columbia University.
Although Roy's bold style of doing things is quite controversial, investors believe that every move is a well - thought - out strategic layout.
Top venture capital firm a16z believes that Cluely is what AI should be like.
In the investment announcement, a16z believes that Cluely has pioneered a new category of "proactive multimodal AI assistants", which is an innovative real - time productivity tool.
They are very optimistic about Cluely's vision: Different from traditional note - transcription products, it has both instant response and in - depth situational understanding capabilities. Its unique positioning across consumer and enterprise markets is refreshing.
Cluely runs invisibly on the user's desktop, using intelligent analysis to provide real - time insights by monitoring voice and screen content. It has quickly become a powerful tool in high - risk professional scenarios.
After becoming popular among consumers through viral marketing, Cluely has also proven its value in the enterprise market (especially in the sales field), winning multiple contracts in a short period.
Cluely's seven - person growth team each has a self - built traffic pool of over 100,000 followers. Their strong distribution ability has created amazing brand awareness: Within a few weeks of its launch, through viral spread and systematic user - generated content, Cluely has obtained considerable subscription revenue.
a16z believes that this growth confirms the urgent need for innovative real - time productivity tools, so this round of investment is worthwhile:
Roy's team has precise strategic thinking, boundless creativity, and lightning - fast speed. The products they are creating can resonate deeply, achieve rapid scaling, and offer novel user experiences.
Coexisting with AI, is cheating justifiable?
This time, they are basically saying: "Cheating is justifiable", and they have published a manifesto of this concept: "Confessions of a Cheater: A Guide to Hacking Every Domain".
We want to cheat at everything.
Yes, you heard that right.
Whether it's a phone sales call, a business meeting, or a tough negotiation. As long as we can win faster, we're all for it.
We developed Cluely so that you no longer have to go it alone. It watches the screen, listens to the sound, and delivers the answers to you in real - time. While others are still guessing, you already know the right answer.
Yes, the world calls this "cheating".
But the same was said when calculators first appeared.
The same was true when spell - checkers first came out.
The same was the case when Google first emerged.
Every time technology makes us stronger, the world panics first.
Then, it gradually adapts. After that, it slowly forgets. Suddenly, it becomes the new normal.
But this time, it's completely different.
AI is not just another tool - it will redefine the rules of the game in our world.
When an AI model can complete memorization, coding, and research in seconds, why do it yourself?
The best communicators, the best analysts, and the best problem - solvers - now, they are the ones who know how to ask the right questions.
The future will not reward hard work, but "influence".
So, start "cheating".
Because when everyone "cheats", there is no more "cheating".
References:
https://x.com/im_roy_lee/status/1914061483149001132
https://www.businessinsider.com/cluely-viral-ai-cheating-startup-15-million-a16z-2025-6
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-21/andreessen-horowitz-backs-ai-startup-with-slogan-cheat-at-everything?srnd=phx-technology
https://cluely.com/manifesto
https://a16z.com/announcement/investing-in-cluely/
This article is from the WeChat official account "New Intelligence Yuan". The author is New Intelligence Yuan. It is published by 36Kr with permission.