Beyoncé's 'Super' $10,000-a-night Airbnb digs
SAN FRANCISCO - When Airbnb launched in 2008, Brian Chesky and his co-founders simply wanted to make some extra rent money by charging visitors to sleep on the air mattresses they set up in their pricey apartment.
How far they've come.
On Monday, Super Bowl halftime performer Beyoncé Knowles posted a photo and note on her Facebook page thanking the vacation rental platform: "It was a Super weekend Airbnb." By late in the day, the post had 500,000 "likes."
According to celebrity gossip website TMZ, Knowles, who is married to rapper Jay Z, and her extended family rented a $10,000-a-night estate in the posh Silicon Valley enclave of Los Altos Hills. Both Beyoncé and her mother, Tina, socialized photos they took while staying at the distinctively modernist property. Neither the singer's camp nor Airbnb commented on the stay.
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Time was when a city's best hotels were always the stop of choice for visiting celebrities and heads of state, but Beyoncé's choice to overnight in what still amounts to someone else's home reflects the compelling nature of the sharing economy at wildly disparate ends of the economic poles.
Fans of the singer seemed to agree that the move brought new cred to Airbnb, one of the nation's biggest start-ups with a current valuation of around $25 billion.
"So, @Beyonce just tagged @Airbnb in her post. Implying as if she stayed at an airbnb instead of a hotel. Major shout out," tweeted @msdgenell, while @kenyaq enthused, "Beyoncé uses Airbnb, someone's home HOUSED BEYONCÉ."
Airbnb may find itself the recipient of more such celeb props as it grows its upscale listings. Just a few weeks ago, actress Gwyneth Paltrow and some of her family used Airbnb for a vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The actress posted a photo on Instagram that showed her facing a sunset and featured the caption, "@airbnb who knew?? Such a beautiful trip. Adiós Vallarta. Hasta la próxima!"
Follow USA TODAY tech reporter Marco della Cava on Twitter @marcodellacava.