Airbnb and AI: Brian Chesky Sees New Verticals — Like Amazon and Apple
Skift Take
No, Brian Chesky isn't necessarily talking about launching flights on Airbnb when he refers to becoming a "cross-vertical company." Google Flights, relax.
On the back of its November acquisition of GamePlanner.AI, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said his company can create a new AI interface, and that it will help transform Airbnb into a "cross-vertical company" like Amazon or Apple.
As with several of Chesky's previous statements about generative AI, this one was heavy on vision with no product launches yet. He pledged Tuesday "you will see some very big announcements later this year."
Let's break down what Chesky said:
Airbnb will not build an AI Large Language Model, which is the backbone of generative AI, but will create an adaptive interface for it "unlike no interface you've ever seen before." It could be "one of the leading and most innovative AI interfaces ever created." He said generative AI is underutilized because the interfaces are so outdated. That new interface would enable Airbnb to transform itself from focusing on a single vertical to a