Airbnb is Now the Everything App

Unprompted insights from former VC-backed founders on how AI is changing what we build, how we work, and the aha! moments along the way.

This week, Airbnb stated their intention of becoming an “everything” app—yes, inspired by (shocker) Amazon. They completely redesigned their app and added two entirely new business lines: Services and Experiences. They launched with primetime ads during the NBA playoffs, features in Wired and the Wall Street Journal, and a splashy rollout on social media.

But here's the thing: experiences aren't actually new to Airbnb (they've offered them for years). What is new is how they're positioning this ecosystem—and it signals something much bigger than just an app update.

Remember when renting your apartment to a stranger was considered weird?

Before Airbnb, the idea of making money by letting random people stay in your home was, let’s be honest, bizarre. What was gatekept by traditional hotels became democratized—suddenly anyone with a spare room could become a hospitality entrepreneur.

But what evolved from this phenomenon is the really interesting part.

People didn't just make a few extra bucks by renting out their apartments on occasion. They turned this opportunity into full-blown businesses, and an entirely new submarket was born—the "short-term rental" (STR) industry—complete with its own:

All we had to do was start clicking on a few STR influencers on Instagram, and now our feeds are flooded with their content:

What started as a simple side hustle transformed into a legitimate business category. The casual Airbnb host became the STR entrepreneur with multiple properties, dedicated staff, and professional operations.

Influencer accounts like “The Real Estate Robinsons” are now becoming the new McDonald's—a franchisable business model built around an individual's unique approach to hospitality.

Now, let's look at Airbnb's newest addition to the app: Services.

According to their release, Airbnb Services includes 10 categories across 260 cities, from chefs to spa treatments, to photography, to hair and makeup, to catering, and beyond.

Think about what this means for the independent service provider. A massage therapist no longer needs to work for a spa. A chef doesn't need a restaurant. A photographer doesn't need a studio.

Airbnb has created a marketplace that connects skilled professionals directly with customers—and each new additional service will create entire submarkets for these industries, creating a massive unlock similar to the evolution we saw with STRs. 

This is where we get excited.

Remember our newsletter about the "100x Impact" that AI is creating? We showed how AI can reduce costs from $28,800 to $288 and shrink timelines from weeks to hours.

The same transformation is about to happen with Airbnb Services.

Today, if a massage therapist wants to launch a business on Airbnb's platform, they need to:

That's a lot of work beyond just giving massages. It's why many talented professionals stay working for someone else—the business overhead is too daunting.

But AI agents are about to change all that.

Imagine a future (coming very soon) where AI can help support that massage therapist:

The massage therapist isn't replaced—they're amplified. They’ve gone from a team of one to (at least) three. They focus on their craft while AI technology handles the business operations that previously required a team.

This is the future of AI and work we're really excited about. It's not robots taking human jobs—it's AI giving humans superpowers to build businesses around their unique skills.

Just like we saw the evolution from casual Airbnb host to professional STR operator, we're about to see the evolution from gig worker to AI-augmented service business.

Every time a platform like Airbnb creates a new marketplace, it unlocks entrepreneurial potential at scale. As AI tools become more powerful by the day, the barrier to scaling a service business shrinks.

This sets the scene for a really interesting future and unprecedented opportunity for solopreneurs and service providers.

The massage therapist becomes a wellness enterprise. The personal chef becomes a culinary brand. The makeup artist becomes a beauty mogul. All without hiring a single employee or spending years in business school.

If you're providing services of any kind and want to see how AI can transform your skill into a scalable business, we're helping entrepreneurs do exactly that. The opportunity has never been bigger.

This is how the economy multiplies— giving everyone access to the resources of a full-blown business at a fraction of the cost (and without that annoying boss).