Airbnb hosting has become a complex business, involving tasks like creating listings, managing properties, understanding pricing trends, communicating with guests, and tracking earnings. As hosts take on more properties, it becomes increasingly challenging to handle everything. To address this issue, Airbnb is introducing the Co-Host Network feature, where hosts can connect with highly rated local co-hosts to assist in property management as part of their winter release.

The company is establishing a network of top-rated local hosts, akin to a LinkedIn or Fiverr for “hosts for hire.” Currently, Airbnb has onboarded hosts with a minimum rating of 4.8 and at least 10 hosted stays. This initiative has enrolled 10,000 hosts across 10 countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, the U.K., and the U.S.

These co-hosts can help with various tasks such as listing setup, pricing and availability, managing booking requests, guest support, and cleaning. They have the flexibility to set their rates for these services. Hosts seeking assistance can view co-host profiles to learn about their skills, service rates, and experience in co-hosting.

During Airbnb’s Summer 2023 product release, the company introduced features allowing hosts to add co-hosts for managing specific tasks and pay them a percentage of bookings. The Co-Host Network is an extension of these features, providing hosts with professional help in property management.

In addition to the co-host network, Airbnb is rolling out features for hosts to view pricing of similar properties in their area, use customizable templates for quick guest replies, and access an improved earnings dashboard. For guests, updates include a welcome tour in the app for first-time guests, suggested destinations, search filters, simplified checkout pages, and local payment options like Vipps in Norway, Mobile Pay in Denmark, and MoMo in Vietnam.

Judson Coplan, Airbnb’s VP of Product Marketing, mentioned the company’s exploration of AI for community support, highlighting its potential for quickly addressing guest and host queries related to app usage, cancellations, policies, reservations, and bookings. Airbnb is also testing AI for summarizing reviews and potentially creating an “ultimate concierge” for customers.