From art school to Airbnb: how Chesky defied his parents

Three air beds, one big idea

Brian Chesky quit his job and moved cross-country in a Honda Civic, unable to pay rent in San Francisco.

The birth of Airbnb

Chesky and cofounder Joe Gebbia were inspired by the idea of booking someone's home like a hotel anywhere in the world. They launched Airbnb with Gebbia's former roommate Nathan Blecharczyk in two thousand eight.

Parents wanted a high-paying job

Chesky's social-worker parents in upstate New York, born in Albany, urged him to pursue a high-paying career. Instead he attended the Rhode Island School of Design, prompting his mother's warning about art's poor pay.

“You somehow managed to pick the only job in the world that pays less than a social worker. You'll get paid nothing.”

Investors dismissed designers

Seeking one hundred fifty thousand dollars to fund ten percent of the company, Chesky met over twenty potential investors who all rejected him.Investors saw designers as incapable of starting companies and didn't take him seriously.

“Joe and I were designers, and as far as they were concerned, designers didn't start companies.”

Cereal boxes caught attention

Airbnb's breakthrough came when it designed presidential-candidate-themed cereal boxes, which caught the attention of Paul Graham, founder of startup accelerator Y Combinator, opening doors with investors.

Airbnb reaches one hundred twelve billion

Airbnb now has a market capitalization of one hundred twelve billion dollars, above its level before the pandemic.

Chesky lived as a host

During the pandemic, Chesky opened his own home as an Airbnb and lived in various Airbnbs across the country for six months to understand the host experience and discover inconsistent practices including complicated rent agreements.

New rules spark host backlash

Airbnb implemented a reasonable house rules policy stopping guests from completing tasks like stripping beds or washing dishes, effective for rentals booked on or after November twenty.