AI interview copilot for coding and system design interviews

Listens to your coding and system design interviews, transcribes locally, and shows you an answer suggestion — using your own OpenAI or Anthropic key.

One-time purchase · 14-day refund · macOS & Windows

Summary

SyntaxCue is a desktop app for software engineers preparing for or taking technical interviews. It captures system audio during a call, transcribes it on-device, and generates a suggested answer with your own LLM API key — no subscription, no backend of ours in the loop.

How it works

  1. Listen. SyntaxCue captures system audio during your call — no bot joining, works with Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and other video call apps.
  2. Transcribe locally. Speech-to-text runs on your machine, not a server.
  3. See an answer. A suggestion appears in a private hint window only you see.

Prepping for system design specifically? Read our system design interview cheat sheet. For live coding rounds, see our coding interview helper.

Want the real architecture? Read how SyntaxCue captures system audio and answers you, without a server.

Why this is different

SyntaxCue vs Cluely

FeatureSyntaxCueCluely
Pricing modelOne-time purchaseSubscription tiers, top tier required for screen-share privacy
Price$79 once$149.99/mo (top-tier screen-privacy add-on)
Per year (approx.)$0/year after purchase — no subscription$1,799.88/year
PlatformsmacOS, WindowsmacOS, Windows
LLM key ownershipBYOK — your own OpenAI/Anthropic API key, billed to you directlyManaged/cloud — no BYOK
Screen-share exclusionIncluded, off by default — no add-on tierPaid add-on tier only
Refund policy14 days, no hoops24-hour window, requires video proof of a software defect
Where Cluely leadsHas a mobile app — SyntaxCue is desktop-only; Ships a ready-made cloud dashboard with session history — SyntaxCue keeps nothing server-side by design, so there is no cross-device session history

Full comparison →

Built for honest interview preparation and real-time support — not deception, including a direct answer to how we think about using AI in interviews.

FAQ

Do I need my own OpenAI or Anthropic API key?

Yes — SyntaxCue is BYOK (bring your own key). You pay your LLM provider directly, at their cost, with no markup from us.

Does SyntaxCue record or store audio?

No. Audio is processed in memory, transcribed locally with whisper.cpp, and never written to disk or sent anywhere except your chosen LLM provider's API for generating an answer.

What's the refund policy?

14 days, no hoops — for technical issues or an accidental purchase.

Does the screen-share exclusion setting keep the hint window out of my screen share?

The setting keeps the hint window out of your own screen-share/recording stream — it's about your screen privacy, off by default, and always toggleable. Check your specific interview process's rules before using it.

Does SyntaxCue work with Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams?

Yes. SyntaxCue listens to system audio, not any specific call platform's API, so it works the same regardless of which app the call is in — Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, or others.