After our initial launch, we didn't see immediate success and even explored creating a roommate matching website before pivoting back to Airbnb.

In the early stages, companies often fail to find product market fit, which can derail their success.

We faced challenges in raising funds, with many investors not responding or passing on Airbnb, claiming it didn't fit their investment thesis or that the travel market wasn't big enough, but we eventually secured a $1.5 million valuation for Airbnb.

In our first year, we faced significant challenges, including a tough go-to-market transition and hiring the wrong team for our stage of growth.

The first version of Airbnb lacked essential features like payment processing and a map view, highlighting that early products can be very basic yet still serve a purpose for a small user base. It operated only during conferences, where they would rent out rooms and shut down the service when the event ended, which was their minimum viable product (MVP).

Airbnb's first product lacked payments and a map view, demonstrating that successful startups often begin with very basic versions of their products.

Most startups never get past level two of product-market fit, which is a common challenge for early-stage companies.

Airbnb was not the first to market; it faced established competitors like VRBO and Couchsurfing, which had significant user bases and brand recognition.

As young founders, our naivety allowed us to explore ideas without preconceived notions, leading us to discover the unique experience that Airbnb could offer. When we started Airbnb, we were in a very different position compared to Uber; the founders of Uber were already wealthy, while we were just trying to survive.