Airbnb’s booking platform wants to take over a larger part of the booking process for additional services. According to management, this would give the company a greater share of revenue, but also the responsibility to provide customer support. Reducing the cost of that support through artificial intelligence could improve the conditions for such a shift and increase profits from guests the company already has. [1]
The implementation of this plan, its costs and its ultimate benefits are uncertain. Favorable business developments do not guarantee an increase in the share price. Share prices may fluctuate, and investors may lose their entire invested amount; returns in euros may also be affected by exchange rate movements.
Car Rentals Through a Partner
Airbnb facilitates accommodation bookings and is gradually adding other services. For car rentals, its partner CarTrawler currently handles bookings, payments and customer assistance. Guests can search for a car through Airbnb after booking accommodation or independently without an accommodation booking, provided the service is available in the relevant location. The company therefore has an opportunity to reach someone who has already booked accommodation through its platform.
Chief Executive Officer Brian Chesky described plans to move bookings for car rentals and other partner services directly into Airbnb during the earnings call on November 5, 2026. According to his statement, the company would receive a larger share of revenue, but would also have to provide customer support. He did not specify an implementation date. [2]
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Savings on Customer Support
In the third quarter of 2026, the company reduced customer support costs per booking by more than 17% year on year. Management largely attributes this decline to improvements in its AI assistant. Approximately 40% of all support requests were resolved without a human agent, compared with about one-third in the previous quarter.
If automation also proves effective for additional services, it could reduce the cost of customer support that Airbnb would take over. Moving bookings directly into Airbnb would then be worthwhile if the additional compensation compared with the current partner model exceeded the new costs. The company could thus earn a higher profit from the same booking it currently facilitates through a partner, without needing to find another customer. [3]
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Compensation Must Cover the New Costs
The decline in support costs to date relates to the existing business and therefore cannot automatically be used as an estimate for car rentals. The new model must also account for the costs of developing and operating the technology. In the cited materials, the company did not quantify the specific terms of future revenue sharing or the costs of handling an additional service booking.
Sales to existing customers are also accompanied by pricing incentives. Under an offer valid from October 19 to November 19, 2026, Airbnb provides eligible customers who have EUR set as their currency on Airbnb when clicking the offer link with EUR 100 in credit for their first eligible car rental booked through the Airbnb offer link on the CarTrawler platform, provided the base rental price is at least EUR 200. The conditions also include consent to sharing limited trip information with CarTrawler and completion of the rental. If the conditions are met, the credit is issued within 60 days after completion of the rental, is valid for two years and can be used for eligible bookings through Airbnb. When assessing profitability, the actual costs of these incentives must therefore be taken into account, as they cannot be determined solely from the nominal value of the credit.
Profit From Existing Bookings
Airbnb could therefore increase its profit even with the same number of additional service bookings. The decisive factor will be how much the company retains from each booking after deducting costs compared with the current partner model, and whether this difference eventually also covers the expenses of introducing direct booking. Under these conditions, cheaper customer support could help the company retain a larger share of the earnings from transactions it already brings to its partners today. [4]
[1] – [4] indicate forward-looking statements; references to sources are provided directly in the text and in the list below. Forward-looking statements represent assumptions and current expectations that may not be accurate or may be based on the current economic environment, which may change. These statements do not guarantee future performance. Forward-looking statements inherently involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to future events and circumstances that cannot be predicted, and actual developments and results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements.
Warning! This marketing material is not and must not be understood as investment advice. Past performance data do not guarantee future returns. Investing in a foreign currency may affect returns due to exchange rate fluctuations. All securities transactions may result in both profits and losses. Forward-looking statements represent assumptions and current expectations that may not be accurate or may be based on the current economic environment, which may change. These statements do not guarantee future performance. CAPITAL MARKETS, o.c.p., a.s. is an entity regulated by the National Bank of Slovakia.
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Sources:
https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/4194
https://news.airbnb.com/airbnb-q3-2026-financial-results
https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/4271
Mgr. Anna Šuhajdová, Member of the Board of Directors of CAPITAL MARKETS, o.c.p., a.s.
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