Airbnb Co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky has stated that the current state of consumer AI is not yet "cracked," noting that current AI tools often fail to provide a seamless experience for services like travel planning. He argues that for AI agents to be truly effective, the industry needs more than just AI-integrated apps; it requires a dedicated operating system built for AI at the kernel level.
Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky: AI Agents Need a Dedicated Operating System
Chesky highlighted that existing mobile and desktop operating systems are not designed to facilitate the complex interactions required by AI agents. He suggested that "agents are like 'apps with faces'" and emphasized the necessity for interoperability, potentially through standards like Model Context Protocol (MCP), to allow different agents to communicate and interact across platforms.
Regarding user interfaces, Chesky believes that while chatbots are useful for lead generation, they are not the ultimate interface for e-commerce or travel discovery. He envisions a hybrid approach combining deterministic, pre-designed interfaces with "generative" interfaces that AI builds on the fly. Airbnb is currently exploring "multiplayer" AI interfaces—tools that multiple people can use simultaneously—to support collaborative trip planning over the next three to six months.
Sources
- Brian Chesky interview: AI agents need their own operating system （TechCrunch AI, 2026-10-01）