When Cluely, a start -up that claims to build a product that helps people “deceive” everything, announced that it has increased the funding of the $ 15 million series by Andreessen Horowitz, some people X was criticized VC to support the controversial company.
After all, Cluely offers not only a product that can have questionable uses, but the start has become famous for the use of what many people call Rage Bait marketing.
But Cluely’s ability to attract attention is exactly what the A16Z attracted to startup.
Even before meeting the founder of Cluely Roy Lee, Andreessen Horowitz’s partner, Bryan Kim, believed that newly formed businesses need new marketing tactics in the AI era.
Kim, like many investors, in the past believed that building a wonderful “Artisan” product with extremely desirable features was the key to the constant success of a start, explained the last A16Z podcast episode.
But shortly after the appearance of Genai, he noticed that the offer of an excellent product may not be enough.
“If you create this thing and Openai or someone is building a new model to include this part in their product, you are over,” Kim said. “So, this extremely stochastic, slow building could not be done. It must be something where the founders moved extremely quickly.”
This awareness has led Kim to believe that speed, either in marketing or in building products, is of primary importance to the creation of a successful start.
Earlier this month, kim Posted a post Explaining his theory of why, for the newly formed AI companies facing consumers, “the momentum is the ditch”.
When Kim met with Lee and saw that Cluely was able to turn awareness to customers who were paying, he immediately knew that he had discovered a founder he had considered.
“It was so difficult to penetrate the noise of all AIs, especially in the consumer, and to do this is really almost impossible,” Kim said.
How does Lee explain why his polarizing marketing approach has created so many buzzs?
“Most people do not know how to make viral content,” Lee told Podcast. ‘Everyone in X tries [sound] Like the most spiritual, thoughtful person. But this is not just a viral feel. ”
Lee, instead, had studied why some places in Tiktok and Instagram blasted.
“Algorithms promote the most controversial things,” he said. “I literally apply the same principles of dispute for X and Linkedin.”
What many people do not know, Lee said, is that Cluely just had a functional product when the start started in April with Lee’s stained video using the hidden AI in a lie in a woman for age and knowledge of art while on a date.
Although it has some appearance of a product, the start has not yet revealed the solution it has suffered.
“The internet is on the storm by saying,” Where is the product? “, Lee said.” We’re earlier than the last lot of companies YC. However, we create more views than each of them. “
Lee is convinced that as soon as the product begins, he will create even more excitement than if Cluely introduces it without the company’s “marketing” for the last two months. (Official launch is set for Friday June 27, he Posted on x.)
Kim sees Cluely’s approach as a perfect incarnation of the theory of “rushing as a ditch”.
Since time is essential to AI, the A16Z partner is sure that Cluely can understand his product on the go.
“What is important is to try to build an airplane as it falls under the rock,” Kim said.
We will all see soon if this plane arrives or crushed.
