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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Airbnb Plans Atlanta, Georgia, Technical Hub

02/22/2021
Airbnb Plans to open a technical and engineering hub in Atlanta, Georgia. The online platform for vacation home rentals will open the location later this year where it will hire hundreds of workers over time, in both technical and non-technical roles.

The company didn’t disclose other details of its local expansion plans, such as a specific location in metro Atlanta or an exact timetable. Airbnb will open a physical office at an undetermined location in the metro area.

"When we began evaluating locations for a new technical hub, we were looking for a city that shared our commitment to diversity and inclusion, a city with a robust and diverse technical talent pool, and a city with great quality of life," Airbnb Public Policy Director Laphonza Butler said in a statement. "One of the things that stood out about Atlanta was its strong educational infrastructure supporting communities of color. Atlanta is an ideal place to grow our team and business and we are thrilled to be setting down roots in the city."

Airbnb wants to increase underrepresented minorities to 20% of its U.S workforce by 2025, up from 12% now according to Butler. The company also wants women to make up half its global workforce by 2025, up from about 47% now.

Details of financial incentives offered to Airbnb also have not been made public, However, the company said it plans to donate any tax incentives or other economic benefits that it receives to the city of Atlanta for “community impact initiatives.”

“Georgia has remained on the cutting edge of training and educating our workforce, which continues to attract first-class companies like Airbnb to invest here,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “I’m confident this is just the beginning of Airbnb’s presence in our state, and I look forward to seeing the long-term opportunities they create for hardworking Georgians in the Peach State for years to come.”

Airbnb said it would also continue to develop community partnerships and expand entrepreneurial opportunities in Atlanta including working with HBCUs and other universities in the Atlanta area to strengthen opportunity pipelines, support community organizations like BestFin and Tech Bridge with hardware for students in need, and support programming for entrepreneurs interested in home sharing and technology and leadership development forums.

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