Airbnb’s Big Innovation That Quietly Vanished

Skift Executive Editor Dennis Schaal reflects on Airbnb’s 2022 launch of “category search,” which allowed users to browse homes by 56 themed categories like lakefronts or treehouses. Initially hailed as a breakthrough compared to traditional destination-and-date searches, the feature faded once Airbnb expanded to include experiences and services in 2025, reverting to a simple search box. Schaal uses this as a lesson in hype versus adoption, suggesting that while agentic AI might truly disrupt travel search, it should be approached with skepticism until proven useful and widely adopted.

Read more expert insights into travel and Airbnb at https://skift.com/tag/airbnb

Connect with Skift
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/skift/
WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAL375LikgIXmNPYQ0L/
Facebook: https://facebook.com/skiftnews
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skiftnews/
Threads: https://www.threads.net/@skiftnews
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/skiftnews.bsky.social
X: https://twitter.com/skift

Subscribe to @SkiftNews and never miss an update from the travel industry.

Видео Airbnb’s Big Innovation That Quietly Vanished канала Skift