Airbnb previously hinted at plans to build its own AI travel agent, but on Thursday the company announced that new AI capabilities will launch in the first half of 2027. In the company’s third-quarter shareholder letter on Thursday, Airbnb also provided more details about how the agents will work, what they will actually do, and how they will differ from typical AI chatbots.
In a previous interview, CEO Brian Chesky outlined the travel company’s approach to AI and described plans to build AI agents with richer interfaces than traditional chatbots. He also expressed his opinion that chatbots are not the right interface for travel, noting that people enjoy the travel planning process and travel predictions. So the agents it builds shouldn’t take away inspiration and browsing, he told TechCrunch in an interview last month.
Chesky reiterated that belief today, telling analysts on an earnings call that people won’t use one AI agent for everything.
“Today’s AI agents like Muse and Instinct are good at simple everyday tasks like making restaurant reservations and scheduling appointments. But planning a trip is different,” he says. “Traveling is an aspiration. Finding where to go and where to stay is part of the experience. In fact, 80% of travelers say they enjoy spending time researching travel. People want to see photos. They want to compare homes. They want to make decisions with the people they’re traveling with,” he continued. “And I don’t think a general-purpose agent is best suited to do that. That’s why we’re building our own AI agent,” Chesky said.
Airbnb explained that its agents will have a personalized interface designed specifically for travel, and will “build the interface” based on the user’s questions, rather than simply responding like a chatbot.
“What we do is develop custom-designed, AI-native experiences that respond to what our guests are looking for,” Chesky said. “So instead of relying solely on traditional chats, which are very text-heavy (again, this is not how you should plan your trip), our agents pull from a library of hundreds of travel-specific interface components (maps, photos, comparisons, calendars, itineraries) and create them in real-time tailored to what they’re looking for.”
The executive said the agent will feel “a little bit like a generative UI” because it’s designed to provide “the right interface at the right time” for specific travel needs.
In a letter to shareholders, the company emphasized that its nearly 20 years of experience connecting hosts and guests has informed the way it builds its agents, incorporating insights into how people both book and host on the platform. Agents can assist travelers with more than just reservations.
“Our agents are able to support guests throughout their trip, from making reservations and resolving payment issues to assisting with refunds and rebookings and 24-hour safety support, something an outside agent simply cannot do alone,” the company wrote.
Over time, Airbnb expects its agents to be able to help travelers with other aspects of their trip, not just homes and hotels, but services and experiences. Service and experience are two areas that have become a bigger focus for the company since its redesign last year.
The company previously said the AI agent would arrive next year, but now it’s more specific, pledging to roll out the new technology to consumers in the first half of 2027.
News of the agent’s release comes alongside strong third-quarter earnings, with sales up 19% to $4.87 billion and beating Wall Street expectations. The company also raised its sales growth forecast for 2026, but now expects it to be in the high teens rather than the mid-teens.
“Airbnb is back in growth mode,” Chesky told analysts on Thursday’s third-quarter earnings call. “It’s rare for a market of our size to reaccelerate growth, but that’s exactly what we’re doing. The third quarter was our fastest revenue growth in more than three years,” he added.
If you make a purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This does not affect editorial independence.
