Airbnb is ramping up its use of artificial intelligence (AI) to speed up the development and testing of new product features. The company's co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky revealed that AI now codes 60% of their software, cutting down feature development time by 60% compared to a year ago.

Chesky highlighted areas like search, sign-up, checkout, payments and host support as beneficiaries. For instance, the company is set to test an AI-driven search function that allows users to type natural language queries for more conversational results. However, Airbnb remains mindful of user preferences, offering a toggle switch for those who prefer the traditional filter options.

On the backend, customer support has seen significant improvements through AI. Nearly half of issues are resolved without human intervention, reducing costs per booking by 16% year-over-year. The company's earnings call showed positive financials with revenue up 17% to $3.6 billion and adjusted EBITDA jumping 21% to $1.3 billion.

However, Airbnb remains cautious about overhauling its interface with AI. Chesky insists that a chatbot-like approach won't fit the travel industry's needs as well as more tailored AI-driven features such as search and discovery tools.