Airbnb’s New Chief Legal Officer Is A Former Biden Aide

Airbnb announced today that it has appointed former White House chief of staff and a prominent figure in Democratic circles Ron Klain as its chief legal officer. A close Biden aide, Klain will begin his role at the company starting January 1.

Last year, Airbnb appointed Jay Carney as the global head of policy and communications. Carney handled public relations for Amazon for seven years after serving as the White House press secretary for the Obama administration. 

Klain, known for his strategic thinking, operational expertise, and close ties to Washington, will report directly to Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky. 

“Ron is both a big-picture strategic thinker and a highly skilled operator, and I’m thrilled he’ll be a close advisor,” said Chesky in a statement. “People have described Ron as one of the smartest people they’ve ever met, but more than his intelligence, he’s known for his excellent judgment and his big heart. Ron is the perfect addition to our team.”

Klain served as White House Chief of Staff from January 2021 to February 2023.

Most previously, Klain was a litigation partner at O’Melveny & Myers. Klain told Axios that he heard about the opening at Airbnb, which was a client of the law firm. 

Klain is not new to representing tech businesses in litigation. He has also served as the chief legal officer at venture capital firm Revolution.