Cluely, a startup that claims to help users cheat on job interviews, exams, and sales calls, has raised a $15 million Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz, the company announced on Friday with a video posted on X.Two investors who were not part of the deal tell A Technology NewsRoom they believe Cluelys post-money valuation is around $120 million.
Andreessen Horowitz declined to comment on that figure.
Cluely CEO Roy Lee didnt respond to a request for comment.Cluelys new funding comes roughly two months after it raised $5.3 millionin seed funding co-led by Abstract Ventures and Susa Ventures.The startup was co-founded earlier this year by 21-year-old Roy Lee and Neel Shanmugam, who were suspended from Columbia University for developing an undetectable AI-powered tool called Interview Coder to help engineers cheat on technical interviews.Cluely is profitable, according to Lees multiple posts on X and podcast appearances.Lees provocative social media presence and highly produced controversial videos have helped to draw attention and create brand awareness for Cluely.In April, for example, as A Technology NewsRoom previously reported, Cluely published a slick but polarizing launch video of Lee using a hidden AI assistant to lie to a woman about his age, and even his knowledge of art, on a date at a fancy restaurant.Earlier this week, Cluely was hoping to throw a large after-party following Y Combinators AI Startup School, a two-day event.
But the police shut down the festivities after around 2,000 people tried to enter the venue, Lee told A Technology NewsRoom.
After they arrived, he told TC, We did some cleanup, but the drinks are all there waiting for the next party.