Building Cluely: The Viral AI Startup that raised $15M in 10 Weeks
The a16z Show25 Jun 2025

Building Cluely: The Viral AI Startup that raised $15M in 10 Weeks

What if virality wasn’t a tactic — but the entire product?

In this episode, a16z General Partners Erik Torenberg and Bryan Kim sit down with Roy Lee, cofounder and CEO of Cluely, one of the most talked-about consumer AI startups of 2025. Cluely didn’t raise a mega round or drop a feature suite to get traction - it broke through by turning distribution into design: launching viral short-form videos, pushing polarizing product drops, and building in public with speed and spectacle.

We cover:

– Why virality is Cluely’s moat

– Building a brand-native AI interface

– The Gen Z founder mindset

– What most startups get wrong about attention

– Why creators are the new product managers

– Cluely’s long-term vision for ambient AI

Cluely is a glimpse at the next generation of startups, where the line between product and performance is disappearing.

Timecodes:

00:00 Introduction

01:07 Early Success

02:02 Roy's Journey: From College Kid to Tech Universe

04:37 The Turning Point: Harvard and Beyond

06:57 Building Cluey: The Early Days

08:27 The Viral Strategy: Mastering Algorithms

13:56 The 50 Interns Experiment

15:30 The Investment Journey: Roy and Bryan's Partnership

19:20 Momentum as a Moat: The Future of AI Companies

20:32 The Evolution of Product Strategy in the AI Era

21:19 The Importance of Speed and Adaptability

22:48 The Role of Distribution in Modern Startups

24:26 Roy's Journey and Product Development

25:25 The Power of User Data and Feedback

26:58 Innovative Marketing and Distribution Tactics

28:25 The Future of AI Integration and Translucent Overlays

32:15 Controversial Marketing and Authenticity

34:01 The Impact of Radical Transparency

36:42 The Changing Landscape of Professionalism

38:26 Concluding Thoughts and Future Vision


Resources:

Find Roy on X: https://x.com/im_roy_lee

Find Bryan on X: https://x.com/kirbyman01

Learn more about Cluely: http://cluely.com/

Stay Updated:

Let us know what you think: https://ratethispodcast.com/a16z

Find a16z on Twitter: https://twitter.com/a16z

Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z

Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: https://a16z.simplecast.com/

Follow our host: https://x.com/eriktorenberg

Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.

Stay Updated:

Find a16z on YouTube: YouTube

Find a16z on X

Find a16z on LinkedIn

Listen to the a16z Show on Spotify

Listen to the a16z Show on Apple Podcasts

Follow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg

Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Episoder(1000)

a16z Podcast: The Storage Renaissance

a16z Podcast: The Storage Renaissance

As we enter a new era of distributed computing -- and of big data, in the form of machine and deep learning -- storage becomes (even more) important. It might not be sexy, but storage is what makes th...

21 Mar 201722min

a16z Podcast: The Product Edge in Machine Learning Startups

a16z Podcast: The Product Edge in Machine Learning Startups

A lot of machine learning startups initially feel a bit of “impostor syndrome” around competing with big companies, because (the argument goes), those companies have all the data; surely we can’t beat...

17 Mar 201721min

a16z Podcast: Build Your Personal Brand

a16z Podcast: Build Your Personal Brand

Your brand, says head of a16z marketing and Outcast Agency co-founder Margit Wennmachers, is what people say about you when you're not in the room. And it's going to happen, whether you choose to have...

13 Mar 201731min

a16z Podcast: The Business of Healthcare

a16z Podcast: The Business of Healthcare

Starbucks supposedly spends more on healthcare than it does on coffee beans. And 20 years ago, says Rajeev Singh, CEO of Accolade, healthcare was 10% of GDP; today it’s 19% -- that's nearly one-fifths...

9 Mar 201717min

a16z Podcast: The Genetics Of Drug Delivery

a16z Podcast: The Genetics Of Drug Delivery

In this episode of the a16z Podcast introduced by Vijay Pande (based on a presentation at our summit event), Russ Altman, Stanford professor of bioengineering -- and former chairman of their Bioengine...

7 Mar 201714min

a16z Podcast: Technology, Mobility, and the American Dream

a16z Podcast: Technology, Mobility, and the American Dream

The irony of our systems working so well -- technological, corporate, and yes, even political -- is that we've become too comfortable: matching to others just like us, producing less, taking fewer ris...

1 Mar 201737min

a16z Podcast: The Future of... You

a16z Podcast: The Future of... You

Humans have always wanted to enhance themselves -- from getting nutrition just-right to optimizing their performance, whether in sports or health or work. And food is a big part of all that. But our c...

28 Feb 201719min

a16z Podcast: Tech and Entertainment in the 'Era of Mass Customization'

a16z Podcast: Tech and Entertainment in the 'Era of Mass Customization'

Imagine, for a moment, an alternative universe: One where Netflix got disrupted by some other streaming-content company that made its DVD rental business irrelevant. But that's just a counterfactual. ...

26 Feb 201745min

Populært innen Business og økonomi

stopp-verden
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
dine-penger-pengeradet
e24-podden
rss-penger-polser-og-politikk
rss-borsmorgen-okonominyhetene
pengepodden-2
pengesnakk
finansredaksjonen
morgenkaffen-med-finansavisen
livet-pa-veien-med-jan-erik-larssen
utbytte
rss-sunn-okonomi
tid-er-penger-en-podcast-med-peter-warren
stormkast-med-valebrokk-stordalen
okonomiamatorene
lederpodden
rss-markedspuls-2
liberal-halvtime
arcticpodden