- Friday, April 25, 2025
By: Vibhuti Pathak
What started as a controversial college suspension has transformed into a multi-million-dollar AI startup for 21-year-old Chungin “Roy” Lee and his Indian American co-founder Neel Shanmugam.
The duo, who were both students at Columbia University, developed a tool called Interview Coder—software that provided real-time assistance during virtual technical interviews. While the tool quickly attracted criticism and disciplinary action, it also laid the foundation for their now-thriving AI venture, Cluely.
Cluely has since raised $5.3 million (approx. ₹44.3 crore) in seed funding and is currently headquartered in San Francisco. The platform is designed to be an invisible, AI-powered assistant that helps users during high-stakes situations like interviews, exams, sales calls, and daily professional tasks.
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The startup’s browser-based tool overlays discreetly on a user’s screen without being visible to others, functioning like a silent co-pilot in stressful moments.
Shanmugam and Lee created Interview Coder while still enrolled at Columbia. The program was initially intended to help software engineering candidates solve complex LeetCode-style problems during interviews by offering silent suggestions. While some praised the concept as an innovative workaround for an outdated hiring process, many others—especially academic institutions and corporate recruiters—saw it as an unethical shortcut.
Columbia University responded swiftly, suspending both students. Reports suggest that tech giants like Amazon even blacklisted Lee following the incident. But instead of backing down, Lee and Shanmugam doubled down on their controversial creation and rebranded it as Cluely—a broader and more refined version of their original tool.
Their defiant message? Cluely isn’t about cheating—it’s about changing how we define “fairness” in high-pressure environments. On social media and their official website, the founders argue that their tool is no more unethical than calculators or grammar-checking software—both once maligned and now mainstream.
Cluely has already crossed $3 million in annual recurring revenue, proving that demand for AI-based support tools is surging, even amid ethical debates. The startup’s launch video, in which Lee uses the tool during a dinner date to bluff his way through a conversation, became a viral hit. Some viewers likened it to an episode of Black Mirror, while others praised its creativity and humor.
Neel Shanmugam, the Indian American co-founder, has kept a relatively low profile, but sources close to the team say he played a key role in refining Cluely’s algorithm and user interface. Together, the duo has built a system they claim is reshaping how people prepare for modern professional challenges.
Columbia University has declined to comment, citing student privacy regulations. Amazon, while not referring directly to Lee or Shanmugam, reiterated its stance that candidates should not use unauthorised tools during assessments.
Despite critics who argue that Cluely undermines merit and transparency, the founders insist they’re addressing a real problem: the stress and rigidity of traditional evaluations. As Lee recently posted online, “Swing big, or don’t swing at all.” And so far, their big swing appears to be paying off.
