Cluely: Innovation or Ethical Concern?
Abhishek Rathi
Gen AI Advisor | Business and Digital Transformation Specialist | Intrapreneur | Start-up Mentor | SAFe Agile Coach
I still remember the lesson from my school days as if it were yesterday.
Before every exam, our class teacher would remind us: “You’re not just writing answers today — you’re building your character.” The idea was simple yet profound: cheating wasn’t just about breaking a rule — it was about breaking trust, with yourself most of all.
Fast forward to today’s AI-driven world, where the lines between help and cheating are becoming increasingly blurred.
One tool at the center of this debate is Cluely, a bold new startup that recently secured $5.3 million in seed funding! Positioned provocatively with the tagline “Cheat on Everything,” Cluely challenges us to rethink not just how we work — but who we are when we work with machines.
Is it a glimpse into the future of augmented intelligence, or a warning signal for ethics under attack? Let’s explore!
🔍 What is Cluely?
Cluely operates as an invisible AI assistant, running quietly in a hidden in-browser window. It sees what’s on your screen, listens to live conversations, and provides real-time, context-aware prompts — almost like having a silent co-pilot in high-stakes moments. Doesn’t it sound like what we have wanted always?
Originally launched as Interview Coder to support engineers during technical interviews, Cluely has expanded its scope to job interviews, sales calls, exams, and more.
It leverages the Freemium business model by attracting new subscriptions and then up-selling the Pro subscription $20/month or $100/year for increased usage. Company website boasts an impressive $3 million in annual recurring revenue, albeit sounding too good to be true.
🌟 Potential Upside of Cluely
1. Exposing Flaws in Traditional Assessments
Having navigated my share of standardized tests and structured interviews, I recognize how often these assessments reward memorization over real-world problem solving. Cluely forces an uncomfortable but necessary conversation:
Are our evaluation systems aligned with the skills that actually matter today?
2. Continuing the Evolution of Assistance Tools
History is full of tools — calculators, spellcheckers, Google — that were once dismissed as crutches but are now indispensable. Is Cluely the next inevitable evolution in how we interact with knowledge and performance?
It’s a question worth asking, especially in a world that demands speed, access, and precision.
3. Shifting Focus to Higher-Order Thinking
If AI can handle tactical information retrieval, perhaps it allows humans to double down on creativity, critical thinking, emotional intelligence, and complex decision-making.
That, to me, is the real opportunity: using AI to amplify, and AUGMENT, not replace, our uniquely human abilities.
⚡ Significant Risks and Ethical Dilemmas
1. Undermining Trust and Authenticity
When credentials lose their credibility, trust collapses. The risk with tools like Cluely is not just that someone might “cheat the system” — it’s that the system itself becomes suspect.
As someone who deeply values meritocracy, I worry:
If skills can be faked at will, what happens to genuine achievement?
2. Privacy Intrusions
For Cluely to work, it must monitor screens and audio in real-time — a practice that naturally raises serious privacy concerns.
Even with assurances of security, can we ever be fully comfortable knowing a third party is invisibly observing sensitive, perhaps confidential, interactions? Is this Value trade-off worth the risk?
3. Legal and Ethical Vulnerabilities
The contradiction at Cluely’s core is striking:
Their marketing proudly invites you to “cheat on everything”
Yet their Terms of Service prohibit using the tool for cheating, academic dishonesty, or impersonation.
Not surprising they have used a hyperbole advertising to great effect which has generated strong views, exactly what the founder hoped to achieve.
🤔 Reflecting on the Larger Questions
As a society, we must grapple with some fundamental questions:
How do we redesign evaluations for an AI-augmented world?
Where do we draw the line between legitimate assistance and unethical advantage?
What safeguards must be in place to preserve fairness, trust, and human dignity?
Because the truth is — AI will keep advancing.
It’s our collective responsibility to ensure that our systems, institutions, and personal values evolve alongside it.
🔮 My Take: Catalyst or Cautionary Tale?
Personally, I see Cluely as both a catalyst and a cautionary tale.
As a catalyst, it exposes outdated systems necessitating new reforms.
As a cautionary tale, it reminds us that technology without ethics is innovation without a soul.
Innovation is unstoppable. Integrity must be non-negotiable.
📣 Over to You:
Are AI tools like Cluely redefining the future responsibly, or are they crossing lines we can’t afford to erase?
I am keen to know your perspectives in comments below 👇
Stay Curious 🌟 Empower Minds 🚀 Inspire Actions 🌍
#ArtificialIntelligence #EthicsInAI #DigitalTransformation #Leadership #FutureOfWork
📚 Sources & References:
Video link: https://x.com/im_roy_lee/status/1914061483149001132/video/1
Business Insider Review
TechCrunch and VentureBeat Funding Reports
Director of Futures, ServiceNow | Top #2 Global Futurist | Author | Speaker | working to help AI amplify our human potential
3moIt’s an interesting question and your pros and cons seem to be both cons around genAI, the pro being exposure of problems in assessments. I agree that AI is both helping us change the way we show up to create value (and in this case pass by the gatekeeper to do so) and requiring us to change both how we assess value and the value we want to measure. These are still early days for those questions but I can see Cluely being an experiential learning tool in the best case. Teaching you to show up differently, which you can learn from to use even when you are not using it. For example if you don’t have the advantage of a parent, mentor or teacher to teach you how to have these kind of conversations, this could be a powerful way to learn.
Founder & CEO The CareVoice | Embedded Health Orchestrator | Global Health Insurtech Entrepreneur | Ex Pharma Biotech
3moThoughtful post, thanks Abhishek