Brian Chesky

布萊恩?切斯基

年齡：33

公司：Airbnb

個人凈資產(chǎn)估值：30億美元

遙想2007年，布萊恩?切斯基和同班同學喬?吉比亞曾經(jīng)一窮二白，連拼租公寓的房租都付不起。為了不被房東掃地出門，兩位頗有創(chuàng)新精神的工業(yè)設計師決定，將地板上擺放的三個氣墊床出租，每個床位租金80美元。兩人拼湊做了一個簡單的網(wǎng)站，在網(wǎng)上兜售他們氣墊床位的生意，還附上了地圖指示所在公寓的方向，后來果真有幾個人回復，做了他們的租客。成立Airbnb那種網(wǎng)站的創(chuàng)意從此萌生。切斯基和吉比亞就這樣成為共享經(jīng)濟的鼻祖。

時隔八年，在得到知名創(chuàng)業(yè)公司孵化器Y Combinator大力支持后，Airbnb再也不是小打小鬧的初創(chuàng)公司。這家網(wǎng)站的租房業(yè)務如今遍布全球190個國家和地區(qū)，預計平均每晚有80萬人在線，一晚就可發(fā)布約200萬個出租或求租信息。Airbnb不但成功躋身硅谷令人夢寐以求的“獨角獸”公司行列，而且成為其中估值名列前茅的佼佼者。

Airbnb的商業(yè)概念是房東在自己不在家時出租屋里的床位供陌生人休息。切斯基坦言，他的母親德博拉?切斯基曾評價，它是“有史以來最差勁的點子”?？涩F(xiàn)在，誰還懷疑它，覺得這不靠譜呢？切斯基不僅滿足了母親要他自己負擔醫(yī)療保險的愿望，還擁有了多得不知道該怎么花的財富。

Brian Chesky

Age: 33

Company: Airbnb

Estimated net worth: $3 billion

Back in 2007, Brian Chesky and his roommate Joe Gebbia were too broke to pay rent on their San Francisco apartment. To avoid getting booted by their landlord, the enterprising industrial designers decided to rent out three air mattresses on their floor for $80 bucks a piece. The sharing economy forefathers hobbled together a basic website advertising their crash pad for rent and the rest—a few setbacks along the way included—is history.

Eight years and a none-too-shabby leg up from Y Combinator later, the scrappy little Internet startup that almost never was puts an estimated 800,000 people up every night in some two million listings in 190 countries, reigning supreme in the coveted Silicon Valley unicorn club.

Chesky said his mom thought the premise of Airbnb—letting strangers sleep at your pad when you’re out of town—was “the worst idea ever.” Who’s skeptical now, Deborah Chesky? Not only does your son have the health insurance you wanted him to have, he also has more money than he knows what to do with.