Airbnb Cofounders are the First Sharing Economy Billionaires

AUSTIN, TX - MARCH 11: A general view of atmosphere at Airbnb Snoop Dogg Wake And Bake Event At SXSW on March 11, 2014 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Airbnb)

Look, we all love taking vacations, but it’s not always easy to find the most perfect place to stay at. And while hotels are great to at least enjoy some perks and have a roof over your head, they don’t always provide the coziness that most people want while taking a break from a stuffy office—and, in some cases, aren’t even an option for family’s with more than five people.

In an economy where people are always looking for more bang for their buck, a few folks got smart in creating comfortable, affordable and safe places for others to take a load off—by renting out furnished houses or apartments of people who don’t need them full-time

That’s why Airbnb was created, because cofounders Brian Chesky, Nathan Blecharczyk and Joe Gebbia wanted to offer a better solution than just those aforementioned hotels. And now their little idea has grown into a billion dollar company, with the trio becoming the world’s first sharing economy billionaires after the next round of funding comes in in the next few months.

With each cofounder set to own a 15 percent stake in the company, they will all now carry a net worth of around $1.5 billion, vaulting all three of them into the ranks of the youngest billionaires on the planet.

But don’t think that all this money will suddenly go to their head, with Chesky still one of Airbnb’s most loyal customers, even listing his apartment on the site to test the market, while his coworkers are still well-known for either biking to work or live in the same apartment as they did when the site first broke ground.

Although they don’t live lavishly, the three Airbnb founders have plenty of money to sit on and continue to watch grow as they build their company and, presumably, invest in other projects to help out fellow entrepreneurs. Not bad for a few guys who just didn’t want to stay in a dirty hotel room.

Photo by Vivien Killilea/Getty Images for Airbnb

Written by Nick Dimengo

Graduate of the University of Kentucky. Cleveland sports fan. Frustrated respecter of LeBron James. Influencer of bad ideas. In addition to Worthly/Housely, I'm a regular contributor to Bleacher Report, Scout, Esquire and Maxim, and run or bike way too much for my own good when not writing. The day a Cleveland sports team wins a title is the day I can officially say my life is complete.