Cluely (startup)

Cluely is a venture-backed cry for help disguised as an AI startup, founded in 2025 by Roy Lee and Neel Shanmugam—two Columbia University rejects who looked at the concept of "integrity" and asked, "Is there an app to bypass that?" Originally pitched as a tool to help sociopaths "cheat on everything" from job interviews to dates, the company operates on the groundbreaking philosophy that actually learning a skill is for losers who can’t afford a $15 million seed round from Andreessen Horowitz. Famous for a marketing strategy that consists entirely of rage-baiting people with actual jobs, Cluely is less of a software company and more of a digital monument to Gen Z narcissism, offering a product that promises to make you the smartest person in the room while simultaneously proving you are the most insecure person on Earth. They are the tech equivalent of a guy wearing a wire to his own wedding—a fraudulent enterprise built on the premise that the only thing standing between you and success is your inability to deceive everyone who loves or employs you.