As more and more Americans get vaccinated, more and more Americans are also making travel plans for later in the year. And various industries are reacting to this in numerous ways — from the launch of new routes on existing airlines to the launch of brand-new airlines. But all those people traveling are also going to need somewhere to say when they get where they’re going — which has placed Airbnb in something of a dilemma.
Simply put, Airbnb’s management is concerned that demand might outstrip supply. That news comes via a CNBC report by Jessica Bursztynsky. In an interview with CNBC earlier this week, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky spoke of adding a massive number of new spaces to the service over the coming years.
“To meet the demand over the coming years, we’re going to need millions more hosts,” Chesky said.
“I think that we probably will have a high class problem where there will probably be more guests coming to Airbnb than we’ll have hosts for,” he added, alluding to his belief that a massive upswing in travel is on the way. For some travelers, Airbnb has already been a preferred option during the pandemic due to safety concerns.
As Bursztynsky notes, Airbnb is in a similar position to Uber, in that both are preparing for an increase in demand for their services in the near future. For Airbnb, that preparation is coming in part from a new advertising campaign seeking to get more hosts signed up for the service. As the company looks to grow, does this mean that we’ll also see an increase in efforts to regulate Airbnb? That seems eminently likely.
More Like This
Thanks for reading InsideHook. Sign up for our daily newsletter and be in the know.
