# Brian Chesky

Brian Joseph Chesky (born August 29, 1981) is an American-French-Polish businessman and industrial designer and the co-founder and CEO of Airbnb. Chesky is the 290th richest person in the world according to Forbes, with a net worth of $9.2 billion, largely due to his 10 percent ownership stake in Airbnb.

## Early life

Brian Chesky was born on August 29, 1981, in Niskayuna, New York, the son of Deborah and Robert Chesky; His father is of Polish and his mother of French origin. Chesky's parents were both social workers. He has a younger sister, Allison. Chesky enjoys sketching and bonsai. He later acquired Polish and French citizenship through the naturalization of his parents.
As a child, Chesky's first hobby was ice hockey. He developed an interest in art in his teens and cited Leonardo da Vinci as an early inspiration. He drew replicas of paintings and redesigned toys and shoes. In an interview with The New York Times, he said he watched friends of his parents redesign their backyard, which led to an interest in landscape architecture and later urban planning.

## Education

Chesky graduated from Niskayuna High School in 1999 and graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 2004 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in industrial design. While studying at RISD, Chesky was influenced by the works of Charles Eames, Ray Eames, and Walt Disney. He was captain of the RISD hockey team and was a competitive bodybuilder. Chesky was also the designer of the unofficial mascot of RISD, Scrotie.

## Career

After graduating from RISD, Chesky moved to Los Angeles to work as an industrial designer. In October 2007, he moved to San Francisco to live with RISD classmate Joe Gebbia. Chesky did not have enough money to pay his rent, and they opened their house to short-term renters as a bed and breakfast, providing air mattresses for guests to sleep on and Pop-Tarts for breakfast during the Industrial Designers Society of America conference, when hotel rooms were scarce. The business became Airbnb.
Chesky became the chief executive officer of Airbnb. He has solicited ideas for improving Airbnb directly from customers and has implemented ideas based on his personal experiences as both a guest and a host on the platform. To receive funding, Chesky and his co-founders created special-edition cereals called "Obama O's" and "Cap'n McCains", based on presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain. Impressed by the cereal boxes, computer programmer Paul Graham invited the founders to the January 2009 winter training session of his startup incubator, Y Combinator, which provided them with training and $20,000 in funding in exchange for a 6% interest in the company. In December 2020, Airbnb became a public company via an initial public offering. Fortune ranked Chesky No. 43 on its "100 Most Powerful People in Business" in 2024.

## Recognition

In 2015, Chesky was included on the Forbes list of America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40. Chesky was recognized on the Time 100 for 2015. In May 2015, President Barack Obama named Chesky a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship. In 2016, Chesky was also named in the Youngest Forbes 400 list. Chesky was named one of the "World's Greatest Leaders" in 2017 by Fortune. He received an honorary doctorate from RISD that year. In 2018, Chesky was named the Bay Area Executive of the Year by American City Business Journals. In June 2022, Chesky was featured among the 100 Most Powerful People in Global Hospitality by the International Hospitality Institute. American computer scientist Paul Graham praised Chesky's management style, describing it as founder mode.

## Philanthropy

On June 11, 2016, Chesky joined Warren Buffett and Bill Gates' The Giving Pledge, a group of billionaires who have committed to giving the majority of their wealth away. Chesky donated $10 million to nonprofit organizations supporting frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. In 2022, Chesky was ranked No. 20 by contributions on the list of the 50 most prolific philanthropists in the United States by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. In May 2022, Chesky pledged $100 million over 5 years to the Obama Foundation to launch a scholarship program for students pursuing careers in public service. The Voyager Scholarship aims to support students in their junior and senior year of college with up to $50,000 in financial aid, a $10,000 stipend, and free Airbnb housing to pursue a summer work-travel experience; a $2,000 travel credit every year for 10 years following graduation; an annual summit; and a network of mentors.