dug Wow, so apparently I wrote this comment a year ago re someone saying we should trust AirBNB’s leadership to do good.
It’s so structured, so well written (lol) - pretty sure I didn’t LLM it but sheesh, so coherent…
“I’d challenge both parts of that.
Yes, Airbnb’s founders are trained as designers, and yes, their language around belonging reflects that sensibility. But let’s not confuse brand values with structural incentives.
Airbnb’s core business model is not about strengthening communities — it’s about monetising underutilised space, often in ways that extract value from communities without reinvesting in them.
If place, community, and society were truly central to Airbnb’s operations, we wouldn’t see entire neighbourhoods hollowed out by short-term lets, or local residents priced out of their own cities.
Cities like Edinburgh, Barcelona, and Amsterdam are pushing back because they’ve seen the harm up close.
Governments may be imperfect, but they’re accountable to the public. Platforms like Airbnb are accountable to shareholders. That difference matters when we talk about whose job it is to protect the fabric of society.”