Airbnb (Nasdaq: ABNB) has acquired a 12-person AI startup, GamePlanner.AI, in order to use its team to flesh out and expand its AI-related services, the company announced Tuesday.
According to CNBC, the deal was worth $200 million.
GamePlanner.AI was still in stealth at the time of the acquisition, and there are scant details about what the startup actually does. It was founded by Adam Cheyer and Siamak Hodjat, who both had prominent roles in the development of Siri. Cheyer co-founded Siri, which was later acquired by Apple, while Hodjat led the natural language processing team for Siri at Apple. Cheyer also co-founded Viv Labs, another AI personal assistant startup that was acquired by Samsung, and helped start Change.org.
“What makes GamePlanner.AI so special is that they combine expertise in AI, design, and community,” said Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky in a statement. “AI will rapidly alter our world more than any other technology in our lifetime, but we need to ensure that it augments humanity in a positive way. Airbnb is one of the more humanistic companies in technology, and I believe that, together with Adam and his team, we can develop some of the best interfaces and practical applications for AI.”
Airbnb said Cheyer and Hodjat will work on select AI projects while implementing their own tools into Airbnb's systems.
While GamePlanner.ai does not have a set headquarters, both its founders say they are based in the Bay Area, according to their LinkedIn profiles.
In addition to his technical experience, Cheyer is a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians and has appeared on "Penn & Teller: Fool Us."
Airbnb stock rose over 6% Tuesday, closing the day at $126.68.
Chesky recently told a group of reporters that he believes AI will benefit home-rental marketplaces more than hotels because of their greater digital presence.
