In 2025, an AI startup exploded into the spotlight with a provocative mission: help people “cheat on everything.” That’s not hyperbole — Cluely, co‑founded by Chungin “Roy” Lee and Neel Shanmugam, built its early identity around being an undetectable AI assistant that listens to your screen and conversations in real time, then offers suggestions, rewrites, and answers.
As its tagline now puts it: “#1 AI assistant for meetings” — taking perfect notes, answering questions live, and helping you feel fully prepared for every call. Cluely, but the path to this polished presentation has been anything but smooth.
Origins: From Interview Cheating to Conversation Coaching
Cluely didn’t begin as a meeting tool. Lee and Shanmugam’s first product was Interview Coder, a hidden browser extension that used AI to help software engineers answer technical interview questions. Their tool was controversial — they were suspended from Columbia University over it. Yet instead of abandoning the idea, they leaned into it, rebranding their concept around a broader vision of “cheating” in all high-stakes contexts.
Their boldest statement came in their early marketing: a launch video showing the AI coaching Lee during a date, helping him lie about his age and art knowledge — a promo that drew both fascination and strong criticism.
How Cluely Works: A Real-Time, Invisible Assistant
Today, Cluely operates as a desktop application that overlays on your screen and listens to your microphone during virtual calls. According to Cluely’s website, it can transcribe speech in real time, generate summaries, detect action items, and suggest follow-up questions.
Some of its core features include:
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Live AI Responses: It processes what it hears and what’s on your screen to provide contextually relevant suggestions in real time.
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Instant Follow-Ups: After a call, Cluely can draft follow-up emails based on the conversation.
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Meeting Notes: It generates clean, shareable notes with key takeaways, decisions, and next steps.
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Covert Operation: Cluely claims its overlay cannot be seen in screen sharing, making it “undetectable” by other participants.
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Multilingual Transcription: The platform supports over 12 languages and claims fast, accurate transcription.
Funding, Growth & Ambition
Cluely has raised significant capital in a short period. In April 2025, it secured $5.3 million in seed funding from Abstract Ventures and Susa Ventures. Just a few months later, it raised $15 million in Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz. TechCrunch Reports suggest a post-money valuation in the hundreds of millions.
The company’s growth strategy hasn’t just been product-led; it’s deliberately viral. Their “cheat on everything” branding drew massive attention, and their bold content — including viral videos — fueled wide discussions.
Ethical Tensions & Public Backlash
Cluely’s promise — live, undetectable AI help — raises deep ethical and social questions. Critics argue it undercuts genuine human interaction and erodes authenticity.
In a profile by The Atlantic, Cluely’s marketing is described as “provocative” and its interface as something like a silent ghostwriter for conversation. Cluely AI Linguists warn that real conversation thrives on pauses, uncertainty, tone, and emotional resonance — all of which are hard for AI to replicate.
There are also practical concerns. According to The Verge, users testing Cluely reported sluggish response times (sometimes waiting tens of seconds for suggestions), audio glitches, and noticeable distraction — even during important calls.
On privacy, Cluely’s own terms suggest that you might need to inform participants in a call that the tool is listening. That undermines the “invisible” narrative and raises legal and ethical red flags.
Real Users, Real Feedback
Reddit and user forums show a mix of praise, skepticism, and caution:
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On r/Cluely, one user praised the app’s note-taking but cautioned about over-reliance:
“I use Cluely for note taking… it’s very cost effective … but their marketing is way over the top.”
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Another shared feedback after dozens of meetings:
“After ~108 meetings … Cluely ended up being my top choice … but I still feel being fully present is hard when AI is prompting me.”
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On a thread about undetectability:
“Cluely runs invisible to screen-share … but some OSs or versions might not be fully supported.”
These discussions reflect a core tension: Cluely is powerful, but not without trade-offs.
The Founders’ Vision — and Their Defense
Lee and Shanmugam are unapologetic about their disruptive framing. For them, “cheating” is metaphorical — a way to highlight how AI serves as a productivity lever. Lee has compared Cluely to calculators or spellcheck: once controversial, now indispensable.
In interviews, Lee argues that AI assistance is inevitable and that embracing it could equalize opportunities: “Using AI doesn’t penalize you — it levels the playing field,” he says.
Risks, Trade-Offs & What’s at Stake
1. Authenticity vs. Optimization
With Cluely optimizing everything you say, interactions could feel less genuine. The emotional spontaneity — laughter, hesitation, missteps — may be smoothed out.
2. Dependency
Relying on Cluely could weaken your own conversational instincts. If AI is always feeding your responses, do you become less practiced in thinking on your feet?
3. Privacy & Consent
Because Cluely listens and records, using it without disclosure raises serious privacy concerns. Some users worry about legal consent, especially in regulated or sensitive conversations.
4. Brand Risk
For individuals using Cluely in professional settings, being “discovered” could backfire. If coworkers or clients think you’re outsourcing your thinking to AI, it might damage credibility — not enhance it.
The Bottom Line: Is Cluely Worth It?
Cluely is a bold, provocative experiment at the intersection of AI, ethics, and human performance. It offers real value: better notes, on-the-fly support, and a way to catch up or stay sharp in high-stakes calls. But it also demands a price: a portion of your spontaneity, and perhaps your authenticity.
If you’re someone who treats calls like performances — who cares more about being prepared than being natural — Cluely might feel like a superpower. But if you value unfiltered human connection, the trade-offs could be too steep.
Cluely isn’t just a tool. It’s a conversation about how much of ourselves we’re willing to outsource — and whether the gains in efficiency outweigh what we lose.
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