How Airbnb uses AI to weed out people trying to use its rental properties for New Year's parties

Airbnb utilizes AI and machine learning technology to prevent parties on New Year's Eve. Last year, the company blocked 63,550 NYE bookings in the US.

• Airbnb temporarily banned parties in 2020 and made the ban permanent in 2022.
• The company said it uses AI that checks "hundreds" of factors on an account before blocked an attempted booking.
• Last year, the company said it blocked 63,550 US New Year's Eve bookings.

Airbnb is using AI technology to crack down on people using its properties to host wild New Year's Eve parties.

Airbnb first banned parties temporarily in 2020 and has introduced a variety of measures to stop them since, BI previously reported. The company made the ban permanent in 2022 and enforces it particularly strictly around holidays like Memorial Day, Halloween, and New Year's Eve.

For Memorial Day in 2023, the company said it added restrictions to some one and two-night reservations and blocked reservations that it deemed high risk based on the user's past ratings and their distance from the booking, as well as if their reservation was made at the last minute.

Last year, the company blocked 63,550 New Year's Eve bookings in the United States, 13,200 in the United Kingdom, and 5,400 in Australia, the company said in a December 18 blog post.

In the post, the company said it will be activating "proprietary AI and machine learning technology" to block booking attempts for full homes over the holiday weekend that "could be potentially higher-risk for a disruptive and unauthorized party."

"When it comes to how we use technology like AI, we're focused on taking a thoughtful approach that aims to benefit Hosts, guests and neighborhoods," Airnbnb head of trust and safety, Naba Banerjee, said in the post. "We're optimistic these measures will help have a positive impact for the communities we serve."

The company said it will be using the program over the holiday weekend in the United States, including Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Australia, and New Zealand.

The technology scrapes through "hundreds" of different factors for each potential booking, including the duration of the trip, how far the booking is from their location, and if the reservation is being made at the last-minute, according to the post.

The post states that the company will block some bookings for full homes that are one to three days in length if they are deemed "high risk." Those who are able to successfully book an Airbnb locally over the weekend will be asked to confirm that they know Airbnb bans parties.