Overview

• Airbnb has launched a new 'Guest Favorites' badge, marking out the most popular homes on its platform based on guest ratings and reliability data. The company already boasts an average rating of 4.92 out of 5 for residences tagged with this new category. Guest Favorites can be searched for and will regularly appear in prospective customers' search results.
• A comprehensive revamp of the platform's ratings and review pages aims to offer potential guests a more in-depth understanding of a listing's quality. More information about previous guests, such as length of stay, whether they traveled with children or pets, will also be made available. Reviews can be sorted by recency or rating.
• A newly simplified 'Listings Tab' will make it easier for hosts to detail their properties for potential guests. Notably, hosts will be able to provide detailed information about sleeping arrangements and organize their property's photos to create a virtual tour. The residence photos will be organized by AI, which will categorize them according to room type.
• Airbnb has incorporated smart-lock system technology including Yale, Schlage and August brands, to allow hosts to create unique door codes for each guest, facilitating seamless self check-ins. The host can also decide how long before and after the reservation the code will be active
• Airbnb is in the process of using advanced generative AI technology to write review summaries. This technique could also increase efficiency in terms of property search, amenities identification from photos, and customer service, such as language translation between hosts and guests.