Airbnb announced this morning that it has acquired the AI startup GamePlanner.AI, a move reported by CNBC to be valued at approximately $200 million, though Airbnb could not independently confirm this figure at the time of publication.
Co-founded by Adam Cheyer and Siamak Hodjat, GamePlanner’s significance lies in its association with notable industry figures. Cheyer, recognized for his role in launching Siri, which Apple later acquired to develop its AI-powered Siri assistant, and Hodjat, who collaborated with Cheyer at Viv Labs, a company Samsung acquired to launch its AI assistant, Bixby, in 2017.
While the exact nature of GamePlanner’s activities remains unclear, a LinkedIn search yielded only two associated individuals: Gabe Greenbaum, a board member representing B Capital, and Joseph Huang, the head of design at GamePlanner. Notably, GamePlanner’s online presence has been elusive, with the earliest available cache from December 2021 showing a blank page.
In a prepared statement, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky suggested that the 12-person startup specializes in combining AI and design to create AI-driven experiences, akin to an AI-focused consultancy. Chesky emphasized the transformative potential of AI and expressed confidence that the GamePlanner team would contribute to enhancing select AI projects and integrating their tools into Airbnb’s platform. Chesky’s commitment to AI innovation is evident in his past statements, particularly his vision of using generative AI to develop a “travel concierge” that learns and adapts to travelers.
This acquisition marks Airbnb’s first since 2019 and its inaugural one as a publicly traded company, signaling the company’s serious intent to realize its AI ambitions under Chesky’s leadership.
