Brian Chesky is co-founder and CEO of Airbnb and is responsible for defining the company's vision and strategy. In 2007, he and Joe Gebbia became the platform's first hosts.
Since then, Brian has overseen the company's growth into what it is today: a community of more than four million hosts that has welcomed more than 1.4 billion guests in more than 220 countries and regions.
"A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, Brian has incorporated his creative experience into Airbnb's culture, products, and community. This design-based approach has generated a system of trust that allows strangers to live together and has created a unique business model that facilitates connection between people and makes them feel at home wherever they go," explains his biography, published on the official website.
Brian is a signatory to The Giving Pledge and has committed to donating the net proceeds from his CEO stock compensation to community, philanthropic, and charitable causes. Originally from Niskayuna, New York, he is an Airbnb host in San Francisco.
Chesky grew up in Niskayuna, New York, north of Albany. He enjoyed hockey and drawing and designing new versions of Nike shoes, hobbies that led him to develop an interest in art.
After graduating from design school, he moved to Los Angeles to work as an industrial designer, earning around €33,000 a year. Shortly after, he moved to San Francisco and partnered with Joe Gebbia. The two graduates, unemployed at the time, soon ran out of cash. When a design conference came to town in October 2007 and caused all the hotels to be fully booked, Gebbia proposed to Chesky the idea of renting out his space to those who couldn't find a place to stay: a " designer bed and breakfast
Sources: Airbnb and Business Insider
Photo: Airbnb
