Bryan Kim, Partner at Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), focuses on early-stage investments in consumer and application-layer AI. He has invested in some of the most prolific consumer companies like: Captions, ElevenLabs, BeReal, Function Health, and more.

One of his recent investments is viral phenomenon, Cluely, a controversial San Francisco-based AI startup founded by Roy Lee. Cluely has raised over $20M to date, with their most recent $15M investment from Bryan at a16z. Cluely is building an invisible desktop assistant to help you “cheat on everything.”

We talk about:

• The wild backstory behind investing in Cluely & ElevenLabs

• Why he calls momentum “the moat” in the AI era

• What it takes to raise a Series A today

• How context makes AI products infinitely better, and harder to replace

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(00:00) Trailer

(01:04) Welcome Bryan Kim & Cluely Intro

(02:26) How Bryan Met Roy Lee

(07:00) The $15M Bet On Cluely

(09:58) Cluely’s Hype Media Strategy

(14:18) Momentum Is The Moat

(20:37) Brex’s Full-Stack Product Suite

(22:26) Chasing ElevenLabs Across the Globe

(26:04) Function Health & Preventive AI

(32:39) Why Creative AI Tools Are Exploding

(34:54) Deepfakes, Risks & Regulating AI

(38:08) Startup Exits, Liquidity & What’s Changing

(43:50) Do Post-2024 Startups Scale Faster?

(49:04) OpenAI Usage beating Social Media?

(51:58) The 3 Metrics Bryan Looks For

(58:07) Growth vs. Profitability: Where We Are Now

(01:02:00) Will Tech Layoffs Keep Rising?

(01:04:35) What’s Next for Consumer AI

(01:05:49) Will Roy Lee Become a Billionaire?

(01:06:57) Jony Ive × OpenAI: New Ambient Device?

(01:09:56) Waymo, Robotaxis & the Future of Cities

(01:11:47) Final Thoughts: It’s Time to Build

Inside a16z’s $15M Bet on Cluely: Lead Investor Bryan Kim Reveals All

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