2007
Hosts the first guests
Turns a need for rent money with Joe Gebbia into the first AirBed & Breakfast experience.2
01
Ooléle portrait
Person · BC
Designer and business leader
Brian Chesky
Co-founder and CEO of Airbnb
Brian Chesky is the co-founder and chief executive officer of Airbnb. Trained in industrial design at the Rhode Island School of Design, he helped turn an early hosting experiment in San Francisco into a global marketplace with Joe Gebbia and Nathan Blecharczyk. His work connects service design, company culture and systems intended to create trust between strangers.1,2
01 · The profile
Background & perspective
In 2007, Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia welcomed three travelers into their San Francisco apartment. With Nathan Blecharczyk, they then developed AirBed & Breakfast, which became Airbnb. Chesky applied his design training to the full experience, from how listings were presented to the relationship between hosts and guests.1,2
As Airbnb’s chief executive, he guided the company through international expansion, regulatory conflicts, safety incidents and the global travel crisis of 2020. His public conversations also trace a change in his role, from shaping the founding product to designing the organization and its tradeoffs.1,3
02 · Verified landmarks
The journey in a few dates
A selective timeline established from identified sources.
03 · Ooléle
Read next
04 · Transparency
Profile sources
- 01Brian CheskyAirbnb Newsroom
- 02About usAirbnb Newsroom
- 03A Message from Co-Founder and CEO Brian CheskyAirbnb Newsroom