PROVIDENCE – Joe Gebbia, co-founder and chief product officer at Airbnb, says his time spent 17 years ago at the Rhode Island School of Design helped prepare him to build one of the fastest-growing companies in the world.
“It’s about looking at a problem and turning it into an opportunity,” Gebbia told a room full of about 500 business owners, educators, students and politicians at the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce 2017 Economic Outlook Luncheon.
“Our company’s culture can draw direct lines back to RISD,” he added.
Gebbia, whose global, web-based short-term rental company is valued at about $31 billion, attended RISD in 2000, eight years before he founded Airbnb with Brian Chesky, also a RISD graduate, and Nathan Blecharczyk, who earned a degree from Harvard University.
Gebbia earned dual degrees in graphic design and industrial design, and now serves on the RISD Board of Trustees.
During the event, held at the Rhode Island Convention Center, Gebbia was interviewed by both Gov. Gina M. Raimondo and Chamber President Laurie White. The conversation ranged from humanitarian efforts to innovation and how to effectively scale a business realizing such rapid growth.
The duo also separately asked him what it would take to attract a company like Airbnb to open offices in Rhode Island.
“The culture of Rhode Island and the culture of Providence is one that’s ripe to attract companies like ours, and part of that is the talent pool,” he said. “A lot of cities don’t actually see the broader picture. Silicon Valley is actually an entire ecosystem. It’s not just one thing. In order for that to work you also have to have access to capital, media, culture and mentorship.”
Airbnb is headquartered in San Francisco, and its platform has spread to 65,000 cities in over 191 countries. There are more than 1,000 listings between just Newport and Providence, according to Airdna.co, a third-party analytics company.
The growth realized locally has happened quickly. In 2015, Providence Business News reported there were only about 500 hosts throughout the entire state.
In March, the company said Rhode Island’s 1,300 active hosts made more than $12 million in supplemental income during 2016, and the number of visitors grew nearly two-fold to 69,000 people compared with the prior year.
The company’s growth is unsurprising given the rapid advancement of the so-called “sharing economy.” The model has come with some pushback in various municipalities, states and countries across the globe. Concerns have been raised about its legality, safety and damaging effects to neighborhoods and local housing markets.
In Rhode Island, however, city and state leaders have largely accepted the model. In 2015, the state passed a law to tax the short-term rentals. Raimondo told the crowd Airbnb was the first company she’d encountered while in office that was “happy” to pay new taxes. The quip evoked laughter from the crowd.
The first-term governor also detailed some of the state’s recent efforts to bolster the innovation economy here in the Ocean State.
“We recently attracted the Innovation Center,” she told Gebbia. “It’s going to have dozens of smaller companies. … We’re trying to build that critical mass.”
To close the event, White invited Teo Janiga to the stage to talk with Gebbia. Janiga, 11, helps his mom, Kelly Ramirez, host visitors at their home for Airbnb.
Gebbia asked Janiga whether there was anything Airbnb could do to improve the overall experience.
“No,” Janiga said. “I think it’s pretty good.”
Eli Sherman is a PBN staff writer. Email him at Sherman@PBN.com, or follow him on Twitter @Eli_Sherman.
