AIRBNB, 2022

In 2021, computer companies were building wheels for their computers, and car companies were building computers for their cars. With the line between car and computer increasingly blurred, the idea of Airbnb developing a mobile living unit designed for a more fluid, adaptable future didn’t seem too far-fetched.

MOBILE LIVING

Largely dependent on short-term stays and travel in strangers’ homes, Airbnb had just gone public 2 years prior, then suffered their biggest loss a year later, illuminating the fragility of traditional hospitality models.

Remote work for the laptop class, the rise of self driving services delivering basic supplies like food or medicine, and the sense of needing to break away, created an interesting concoction.

TRANSPORTATION HOSPITALITY

Airbnb Garage was a proposal shared with Joe before he left Airbnb to launch Samara as a new company in 2022. It was an exploration of how hospitality, real estate, and transportation could intersect in meaningful ways.

MEMOJI HARDWARE

We looked at the base unit itself as a chassis capable of supporting a variety of modular and interoperable parts for a variety of lifestyles and preferences.

HOME IS A NETWORK

A major component of the proposal was the concept of “life stations,” an expanded idea of Tesla’s charging stations, which anchored the idea of a deeply interconnected, self-sustaining, and mobile ecosystem. Functionally, they support and enhance the functionality of mobile homes while also serving as community hubs that extend Airbnb's philosophy of flexibility and belonging.

Serving as the connective tissue that holds the entire experience together, we imagined the stations as a comprehensive infrastructure for seamless operation of the Airbnb mobile home ecosystem, including parts servicing, battery swapping, lockers (a blend between post boxes and Amazon lockers), maybe even laundromats and snack bars.