Airbnb launched its Host Clubs in 2016, in part to help with local campaigns against regulatory clampdowns. Now, it is seeking to expand these clubs.
20.11.2023 - 14:13 / skift.com / Joe Biden / Brian Chesky / Srividya Kalyanaraman
Airbnb announced today that it has appointed former White House chief of staff and a prominent figure in Democratic circles Ron Klain as its chief legal officer. A close Biden aide, Klain will begin his role at the company starting January 1.
Last year, Airbnb appointed Jay Carney as the global head of policy and communications. Carney handled public relations for Amazon for seven years after serving as the White House press secretary for the Obama administration.
Klain, known for his strategic thinking, operational expertise, and close ties to Washington, will report directly to Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky.
“Ron is both a big-picture strategic thinker and a highly skilled operator, and I’m thrilled he’ll be a close advisor,” said Chesky in a statement. “People have described Ron as one of the smartest people they’ve ever met, but more than his intelligence, he’s known for his excellent judgment and his big heart. Ron is the perfect addition to our team.”
Klain served as White House Chief of Staff from January 2021 to February 2023.
Most previously, Klain was a litigation partner at O’Melveny & Myers. Klain told that he heard about the opening at Airbnb, which was a client of the law firm.
Klain is not new to representing tech businesses in litigation. He has also served as the chief legal officer at venture capital firm Revolution.
Airbnb launched its Host Clubs in 2016, in part to help with local campaigns against regulatory clampdowns. Now, it is seeking to expand these clubs.
You'll be waiting a long time to get into Soho House in some of the world's largest cities.
For most New Yorkers, Times Square is a place to be avoided at all times—especially and unequivocally on New Year’s Eve. The Ball Drop looks fun and exciting when watched from the warmth and privacy of your couch but in real life, it looks like a million people packed between police barricades and squished up against each other in the cold for way too many hours, waiting for a 10-second countdown. And there are no public restrooms.
President Joe Biden is a self-described train fan, commuting between Washington, D.C. and Delaware on Amtrak for decades as a Senator. Now to beef up U.S. passenger rail, his administration is doling out more than $8 billion, including funds for two high-speed trains in California and Nevada.
Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, who left his full-time role at the company a year ago, has sold more than $1.37 billion worth of his Class A shares since that time, including more than $1 billion so far in 2023, according to regulatory filings, Bloomberg reported. Gebbia still chairs the non-profit Airbnb.org, but more importantly, he retains the bulk — but not all — of his Class B shares, which now give him 19.8% of Airbnb’s voting power. Together with his two other co-founders, CEO Brian Chesky (30.6%) and Chief Strategy Officer Nathan Blecharczyk (26.9%), they control 77.3% of Airbnb’s voting power.
A New York state court judge dismissed an Airbnb lawsuit against New York City, ruling the city had a right to require host registration and licenses, and that it was reasonable to require that Airbnb — and other platforms — verify that listings have licenses, or face penalties.
Happy hump day, folks – let’s get into it. I was reading this latest report from Skift’s director of research Wouter Geerts: Airbnb vs Vrbo in 20 Charts, and here are a few stats I find interesting.
Happy Tuesday, folks! We’re back after last week’s 10th annual Skift Global Forum in New York City. It was quite the event: Notable speakers for me were Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky, Salamander Hotels CEO Sheila Johnson, and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.
Good morning, readers. I hope you’re having an easy Thursday so far. I don’t know about you, but I am loving the new look of this newsletter, so much so that I sent myself multiple test emails this morning.
Happy Tuesday, folks! If you need as much coffee as I did this morning, you had a good weekend.
Lodgify was founded in Barcelona, Spain in 2012 and now has 300 employees working remotely across the world.
I professed my love for Carnegie Diner in this column more than two years ago. Today, my fondness for the restaurant is as strong as ever and perhaps even more.