On its fourth-quarter earnings call this week, Airbnb said its custom-built AI agent is now handling about one-third of customer support inquiries in North America, with plans to expand the system globally. CEO Brian Chesky told investors that if the rollout continues as expected, more than 30% of all support tickets across the company could be managed by AI voice and chat within a year, in every language where Airbnb also employs human agents.
The AI system isn’t a generic chatbot bolted onto a help page. Airbnb built the agent internally to resolve a broad range of customer issues across its two-sided marketplace of hosts and guests. That includes navigating booking questions, payments, and disputes — interactions that directly affect customer trust and retention.
Chesky framed the move as both a cost and quality play. “We think this is going to be massive because not only does this reduce the cost base of Airbnb customer service, but the quality of service is going to be a huge step change,” he said. The comment suggests the company believes its AI can, in some cases, resolve issues as well as — or better than — human agents.
The company is rolling the feature out in phases. It is live in North America and will expand internationally, targeting the same languages in which Airbnb already staffs human customer support. That gradual approach gives the company room to refine performance before scaling globally.
Airbnb is pairing the support automation push with a broader AI strategy. Chesky highlighted the recent hiring of CTO Ahmad Al-Dahle, formerly at Meta where he led the generative AI team behind Llama, and previously at Apple for 16 years. Chesky said Airbnb aims to build an “AI-native” experience, including an app that doesn’t just return search results but “knows you.”
According to Chesky, that vision goes beyond guest search. He said AI will help travelers plan entire trips, assist hosts in running their businesses, and improve Airbnb’s internal operations. The company is already experimenting with conversational AI search, currently enabled for a “very small percentage” of traffic, and plans to introduce sponsored listings into search later on.
Airbnb’s leadership also argued that its data gives it an edge over standalone AI platforms. Chesky noted that Airbnb has 200 million verified identities, 500 million proprietary reviews, and the ability for guests to message hosts — something he said 90% of guests do. He positioned AI as a layer on top of that ecosystem, not a replacement for it.
Investors pressed on whether AI platforms could eventually threaten Airbnb by moving into short-term rentals. Chesky pushed back, emphasizing that Airbnb is more than a consumer-facing app. It includes host tools, customer service, identity verification, insurance protections, and a payments system that processes more than $100 billion annually.
Financially, Airbnb reported $2.78 billion in fourth-quarter revenue, topping estimates of $2.72 billion. For the current quarter, it forecast revenue between $2.59 billion and $2.63 billion, above Wall Street expectations of $2.53 billion, and projected “low double-digit” revenue growth for the year.
Internally, AI adoption is also accelerating. The company said 80% of its engineers now use AI tools, with a goal of reaching full adoption soon.
Taken together, Airbnb’s update shows AI moving from experimentation into core operations. With one-third of North American support already automated and a global expansion underway, the company is betting that AI can handle a significant share of customer interactions — while reshaping how its platform works behind the scenes.
This analysis is based on reporting from TechCrunch.
Image courtesy of Airbnb.
This article was generated with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy and quality.
