Joe Gebbia

Controversies

• Gebbia previously chaired Airbnb’s non-profit charitable arm, Airbnb.org, which promotes refugee support initiatives. Gebbia stepped down from the charity in 2025 after joining DOGE. Since then, he publicly supported voices critical of migrant and refugee aid.
• Gebbia's sharp rightward turn is evident on social media:
• He not only promoted posts questioning childhood vaccines but also boosted content framing hydroxychloroquine as a COVID treatment.
• He claimed that JD Vance’s virulently anti-immigrant speech on migration in Europe was a “powerful message.” Gebbia also retweeted a social media post that claimed immigration was driving up housing prices in Canada and Australia.

Obscene spending

• Gebbia has reportedly owned homes in San Francisco, West Lake Hills Texas, and Atlanta Georgia. His current Texas mansion is worth $3 million.
• Gebbia was announced as a minority owner of the San Antonio Spurs in 2022. When he acquired a stake in the team he said: “I remember thinking to myself: One day, I want to be in the NBA of the business world.”

Enabling

Gutting the Government

• Gebbia joined the so-called Department of Government Efficiency in February 2025 which, with Gebbia’s friend, fellow billionaire Elon Musk at the helm, attempted to gut the federal government. Gebbia’s main task? To overhaul the government’s retirement paperwork system. Gebbia claimed he’d be bringing his “designer brain and start-up spirit” to DOGE, to improve the ”slow and paper-based retirement process” for federal workers.” The stakes of this hostile takeover are high for the over 2 million federal workforce retirees who rely on pension payments.
• Whistleblowers and civil servants have sounded the alarm about the many ways DOGE is using evasive and questionable techniques to gain access to sensitive information. From failing to disclose data exports, to turning off monitoring tools that shows who is accessing what data, whistleblowers in at least two agencies claim DOGE may be responsible for countless data security failures that are endangering the American public.
• Despite public outcry, Gebbia aligned himself with close friend and ally Elon Musk. For instance, Gebbia publicly praised Musk and DOGE’s attempt to claw back $80 million in FEMA funding to support migrants in New York City. Gebbia even gained enough power within DOGE that Musk allies reportedly saw Gebbia as a potential replacement to lead DOGE after Musk left. Gebbia has clearly made a good impression with Trump and his cronies. After his stint in DOGE, Trump appointed Gebbia as the first ever “Chief Design Officer” to update the government’s online presence. According to Gebbia he will be creating an “Apple Store-like experience” in the government.

Destruction of affordable housing

• Gebbia is a co-founder of Airbnb and currently sits on the company’s Board. As the company rakes in billion-dollar revenue, it has destabilized housing markets around the country. Airbnb fueled a housing affordability crisis - the “Airbnb effect” fuels gentrification and pushes out longtime residents. Airbnb listings in cities often lead to higher rental and housing prices. In cities facing overtourism, like Los Angeles, Airbnb enables landlords to push short-term rentals rather than more stable long-term housing for local communities. A 2017 study in NYC concluded that Airbnb disproportionately impacted housing stability for Black communities.
• Gebbia continues to find new ways to profit from housing. In 2023 Gebbia raised over $40 million from the venture capital firm Thrive Capital for his tiny home start-up Samara. Thrive Capital is run by Jared Kushner’s brother, Josh Kushner. Gebbia’s tiny homes come with a big price tag - Samara’s two-bed-two-bath model starts at $400,000.