## From Suspension to Startup: Columbia Dropout Raises $5.3M for AI ‘Cheating’ Tool
Chungin “Roy” Lee, a 21-year-old former Columbia University student, has turned a disciplinary setback into a funding opportunity. After being suspended for developing an AI-powered tool designed to help software engineers cheat on job interviews, Lee announced on Sunday, April 21st, that his startup, Cluely, has secured $5.3 million in seed funding from Abstract Ventures and Susa Ventures.
Cluely, co-founded with fellow Columbia dropout Neel Shanmugam, aims to expand the capabilities of its initial “Interview Coder” tool beyond just job interviews. The San Francisco-based startup now offers users a discreet, in-browser window powered by AI, allowing them to access information and assistance during exams, sales calls, and other situations where external help might be considered, well, cheating.
The company’s bold manifesto openly embraces the “cheating” label, drawing parallels to historical skepticism surrounding inventions like calculators and spellcheck. Cluely argues that these tools, once seen as shortcuts, are now essential components of productivity and efficiency.
To showcase its product, Cluely released a provocative launch video featuring Lee using the AI assistant to embellish his knowledge on a date, resulting in a humorous and slightly awkward exchange. While some lauded the video’s attention-grabbing nature, others criticized it as a “Black Mirror”esque portrayal of technology blurring ethical lines.
Despite the controversy, Cluely reports significant traction, claiming to have surpassed $3 million in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) earlier in April.
The roots of Cluely trace back to the founders’ frustration with LeetCode, a platform for coding questions often used in software engineering interviews. Lee even admitted to leveraging the AI cheating tool to secure an internship with Amazon. While Amazon declined to comment on Lee’s specific case, they confirmed that job candidates are required to acknowledge they will not use unauthorized tools during the interview process.
Cluely’s launch comes amidst a wave of AI startups pushing ethical boundaries. Earlier this month, another AI researcher unveiled a company with the ambition of replacing all human workers, sparking its own debate about the future of work. As AI technology continues to advance, companies like Cluely are forcing us to confront complex questions about the role of AI in education, employment, and everyday life.