# Airbnb's Joe Gebbia At The HIBT Summit

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2018-12-06
- Length: 16m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit

## Summary

Joe Gebbia, co-founder of Airbnb, recounts the early days of the company, detailing how he and co-founder Brian Chesky persisted despite overwhelming rejection from investors who called their idea 'stupid' and 'irrational.' Gebbia explains that their conviction came from the visceral, magical experience of hosting three strangers in their own apartment, which proved the potential for human connection despite spreadsheets suggesting failure. He describes the company's iterative process, including four failed launches (for airbeds, SXSW, the DNC, and the 4th attempt) before finding product-market fit, and shares a specific anecdote about personally driving to a stranger's location at 11 PM to solve a critical customer service crisis.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit#t=0) Introduction: Joe Gebbia and Airbnb's Early Rejection
- [2:08](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit#t=128) Investor Rejection and the 'Stupid' Idea
- [3:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit#t=217) The Visceral Proof of Concept and Personal Conviction
- [5:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit#t=309) Entrepreneurial Resilience and Past Failures
- [8:22](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit#t=502) Iterating Through Four Failed Launches
- [10:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-12-06-airbnbs-joe-gebbia-at-the-hibt-summit#t=655) Customer Service and the 11 PM Jeep Rescue

## Topics

- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch

## Mentioned

- Airbnb (company)
- Y Combinator (company)
- Paul Graham (other)
- Slack (company)
- Stuart Butterfield (other)
- Glitch (company)
- RISD (other)
- Chronicle Books (company)
- SXSW (other)
- DNC (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [CES 2019 Special: Stas Gayshan, CIC-Boston](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ee-times-current/2019-01-16-ces-2019-special-stas-gayshan-cic-boston) (EE Times Current)
- [Ep. 39 - Starting a Hardware Company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/open-hardware-manufacturing-podcast/2025-05-15-ep-39-starting-a-hardware-company) (Open Hardware Manufacturing Podcast)
- [Keenan Wyrobek (Co-founder/CTO, Zipline)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/just-gonna-send-it/2026-07-29-keenan-wyrobek-co-founder-cto-zipline) (Just Gonna Send It)
- [An Interview with Ben Einstein](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2018-08-06-an-interview-with-ben-einstein) (The Amp Hour)
- [#035 - How a hardware startup’s product goes viral, with Christian Smith of TrackR, USA](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-hardware-entrepreneur/2017-08-16-035-how-a-hardware-startups-product-goes-viral-with-christian-smith-of-trackr-us) (The Hardware Entrepreneur)

## Citing this page

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