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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Connect with us:
1. Bryan Kim: https://x.com/kirbyman01
2. Molly O’Shea: https://x.com/MollySOShea
3. Sourcery: https://x.com/sourceryvc
(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
