Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia’s post announcing his decision to step back from his full-time role at the company received a congratulatory message in response from Elon Musk.Joe Gebbia, who has been with Airbnb since its inception in 2007, has said that he will remain on the company’s board. “After great consideration, I’ve decided to step back from my full-time operating role at Airbnb,” Gebbia said in a letter to employees, which he shared on Twitter. “The primary reason for this transition is that this is the only company I’ve ever helped build, and my brain is bursting with more ideas to bring to the world.” Gebbia also reminisced about the early days of Airbnb, which came about after his landlord increased the rent of his apartment by $1,050 back in 2007. To help cover the unexpected rent hike, Gebbia and his flatmate Brian Chesky came up with the idea of renting out airbeds in their apartment to people visiting San Francisco.
“Much to our surprise, this last-minute solution turned into a company beyond my wildest, most ambitious daydream,” wrote Gebbia in his letter. He posted the open letter on Twitter as he announced his decision to step back from a leadership role, writing: “After 14 wild years, I’ve decided to step back from my full-time role at Airbnb.” Tesla chief Elon Musk congratulated him in response. “Congrats on an incredible company with Airbnb, now for Book 2!” he wrote.
Joe Gebbia said he will explore other projects after stepping down from his position at Airbnb – including focussing on being a parent. “My first new venture is a startup called parenthood, at which I’ll be taking on the role of Dad. The others involve a complementary product to Airbnb, documentary filmmaking, and various philanthropic initiatives. I’m looking forward to sharing more about these with you soon,” he wrote.