Airbnb AI search test follows company claims of faster product releases

Airbnb’s AI search test is arriving alongside the company’s claim that artificial intelligence is speeding up how quickly it develops and releases products. For investors, the update offers a look at how Airbnb is trying to use AI both to improve the guest experience and lower the cost of running its platform.

On Airbnb’s second-quarter earnings call, Chief Executive Brian Chesky said AI had reduced the time from an idea to a launch by as much as 60% for some key initiatives. He also said the company shipped nearly 80% more features and improvements in the first half than in the comparable six months a year earlier, according to TechCrunch.

Those are company-reported measures, rather than independently verified performance figures. Chesky said AI has aided work in search, sign-up, checkout and payments.

How will Airbnb’s AI search test work?

Airbnb plans to let users choose between its existing search-and-filter process and an AI-driven option through a toggle, TechCrunch reported. In the AI mode, a traveler could describe what they want in ordinary language, and the service would return visual results.

Chesky said the feature could use conversational, AI-generated titles in its results. He also described listing-page highlights that could be created in real time and tailored to an individual user. Those comments describe the intended or tested experience, not a broad product launch.

The timing and scope of the testing remain unclear. A February report said Airbnb’s AI search was available to a very small portion of traffic at that point. The later reporting characterized the company as beginning a new test, but neither account establishes a complete rollout timeline, geography or number of users.

AI search is separate from Airbnb’s existing AI uses

The experimental interface is separate from AI functions Airbnb says it already uses across its service. In its Help Center, Airbnb says AI helps guests find homes, experiences and services using factors including quality, popularity, price and location. It also says it uses AI to infer interests and preferences, which can affect suggested destinations, search filters and which listing details appear most prominently.

Customer support is another operational use. Airbnb said nearly 45% of issues that begin with its AI agent are completed without human involvement, while support cost per booking fell 16% from a year earlier, according to TechCrunch. Those figures do not show how much of the savings came from AI alone, but they give context for the company’s focus on automation.

What can users do with their data?

Airbnb says it may use personal information to develop and improve the AI models behind its features, while employing measures including de-identification, encryption, pseudonymization and limited access. Users who do not want their information used for that purpose can turn off the “Help improve AI-powered features” setting under Account settings and Privacy, according to Airbnb’s Help Center.

This story draws on original reporting from TechCrunch.