Columbia student kicked out of college for cheating raises $5M for AI-powered cheating tool
Ex-Columbia student Roy Lee was kicked out of college for allegedly using AI to cheat. Now he’s raised over $5 million to kick-start his AI cheating tool.
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Ex-Columbia student Roy Lee was kicked out of college for allegedly using AI to cheat. Now he’s raised over $5 million to kick-start his AI cheating tool.
Roy Lee was suspended from Columbia University following accusations that he was using a tool to cheat on technical job interviews for the likes of Amazon, TikTok, and Meta.
After Lee used his tool in a real-life job interview with Amazon, the college issued him a disciplinary notice.
I just got kicked out of Columbia for taking a stand against Leetcode interviews.
undefined Roy (@im_roy_lee) March 27, 2025
Here's the whole story (long thread): pic.twitter.com/Q7LPWjwyA7
According to Lee, an Amazon executive had made Columbia aware of the situation and told the college to “expel this kid or we won’t hire from your school anymore.”
The letter, supposedly sent by an Amazon executive, states that Lee’s performance was “spectacular,” but later, they received a link to a YouTube video created by the student showing him using an “invisible cheating tool” to “gain unfair and unapproved advantage during the interview process.”
“We trust Columbia to take proper action with regards to this student,” the letter concludes.
Since then, Lee has used this AI-powered cheating tool to help others “cheat” their way through meetings and sales calls.
Cluely is an AI-powered tool that claims to be completely undetectable. There’s not too much information on the mechanics behind the tool, but it essentially helps users cheat by analyzing what’s on their screen, listening to audio, and then suggesting answers to questions.
Lee released a trailer for Cluely via X, which garnered 11 million views. The one and a half minute ad shows Lee on a “date.”
Cluely is out. cheat on everything. pic.twitter.com/EsRXQaCfUI
undefined Roy (@im_roy_lee) April 20, 2025
During the date, he is wearing glasses that appear to simulate what will happen on your desktop.
The software provides suggestions based on the situation. In this case, the AI prompts Lee to say that he’s 30. Cluely then prompts Lee to continue the conversation, and the pair chat.
It’s safe to say that the “date” didn’t end well. But Lee guarantees that Cluely will help its users “cheat on everything.”