I guess everything is wechat now
In defence of making your core offering really, really good
Today Airbnb launched a services inside their app- they’ve been working on similar ideas in the past like Experiences, but this is a deeper level of service integration into the core Airbnb product.
Just like Twitter under Musk, I see the slow wechatization of large, well capitalized technology companies as a big, ugly mistake that 10 years from now will be obvious to shareholders.
There’s a deep set of issues that haunt Airbnb as a platform in 2025;
regulatory: in many cities, its banned or at risk of bans.
fee structures: the hidden fee structures of Airbnb are very difficult and are not pro-consumer.
supply/listing quality: early hosts who had dedicated properties were great, because they were motivated early adopters. Post-COVID, there are a lot of bad hosts who are doing it because they were told its easy.
unresolved design problems: there are many unresolved design problems in Airbnb a platform. These issues have always existed, but with scale they are even more obvious to anyone but casual users.
As a public company CEO I think BC is great- he’s a wonderful communicator and having seen him in many different contexts, I think he’s a great leader.
As a company, I love Airbnb. I have 150 reviews, 6 figures of spend.
But I want the core product to be AMAZING. I want the focus of this mammoth company to be relentlessly focused on the core product being improved. I don’t want a cookie baking experience, a chance to win a stay in a floating house, or another channel to rent-seek my massage therapist appointments.
I want great stays, I want great hosts, I want great support, I want great discoverability, I want great planning.
I want relentless focus on the core offering of a great technology company, and I want to avoid the wechatification of my apps. Please.
https://x.com/bchesky/status/1922364651775385999