Under the planned experience, users will be able to enter conversational requests rather than build searches only through traditional filters. Airbnb can then present results visually while using AI to generate parts of the interface.
“The titles could actually be AI generated and they can be conversational as if you’re reading a chatbot, but more visual. Then you get to the product description page and the highlights are AI generated in real-time and personalized to you,” Chesky said.
The test represents a broader step into consumer-facing AI for Airbnb, whose existing uses have largely included features such as review summaries and listing highlights. The company is maintaining its current search experience alongside the AI option as it begins testing the new approach.
Behind the interface, Airbnb is already using AI much more extensively to develop its products. Earlier this year, the company said AI was responsible for writing 60% of its new code. Chesky now says the technology is helping Airbnb shorten development cycles across several parts of its platform.
“Today, we’re building, testing, and iterating faster than we could just a year ago. Across some of our key initiatives, we’ve reduced the time from concept to launch by as much as 60%. And compared to the same 6 months last year, we’ve increased the number of features and improvements we shipped this year by nearly 80%,” Chesky said.
According to Chesky, AI-assisted development has contributed to work involving search, signup, checkout and payments. Airbnb has also introduced tools intended to simplify onboarding for hosts.
Customer support is another area where the company has deployed AI at scale. Airbnb introduced an AI support bot in North America in 2025 and has since expanded the system to more than 50 languages. The company plans to extend it to voice calls later this year.
Airbnb says nearly 45% of customer issues that begin with its AI agent are resolved without a person becoming involved. The company also reported that its support cost per booking has fallen 16% from a year earlier.
The combination of AI-assisted software development and customer-facing features gives Airbnb two distinct applications for the technology. Internally, the company is using AI to shorten the path between an idea and a released feature. For travelers, it is testing whether natural-language requests can provide a more useful way to search without removing the familiar controls already available.
That approach is particularly visible in the search test. Instead of immediately making AI the primary interface, Airbnb is putting the new system alongside its existing product. The toggle allows the company to introduce conversational search while preserving the search and filtering process customers already know.
The increased development pace comes as Airbnb reported revenue of $3.6 billion for the quarter ended in June, up 17% from a year earlier. Adjusted EBITDA increased 21% to $1.3 billion.
For Airbnb, the next stage of its AI strategy is therefore moving beyond isolated features. AI is already being used to write code, support customers and help develop core parts of the service. The upcoming search test will show how the same technology translates into one of the platform’s most important consumer interactions: helping travelers find where they want to stay.
This analysis is based on reporting from the tech buzz.
Image courtesy of Airbnb.
This article was generated with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy and quality.
