# Joe Garcia

> Joe Gebbia co-founded Airbnb in 2008 out of a San Francisco living room - air mattresses, breakfast included - and turned a half-crazy idea into an $85B company. His current venture, Samara, builds factory-assembled, solar-ready backyard homes (ADUs) that go from permit to move-in in under seven months. In early 2025 he became America's first Chief Design Officer, tasked with redesigning the federal government's 27,000 websites. A Rhode Island School of Design graduate with dual majors in graphic and industrial design, Gebbia approaches every problem - housing affordability, government UX, refugee shelter - through the lens of democratic, empathetic design.

- **Role:** Co-Founder at Samara; Chief Design Officer of the United States
- **Organizations:** Samara, Airbnb, Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), National Design Studio
- **From:** Atlanta, Georgia, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Bachelor of Fine Arts - Graphic Design & Industrial Design (dual major), Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), Supplementary business courses, Brown University, Supplementary business courses, MIT
- **Known for:** Co-founded Airbnb, which grew to an $85B+ company and changed how 1+ billion people experience travel, Founded Samara, raising $75M total to build factory-assembled solar-ready backyard homes at scale, Appointed America's first Chief Design Officer by President Trump (February 2025)

## Career timeline

- **1981** — Born in Atlanta, Georgia
- **1990s** — Sold hand-drawn Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle illustrations to classmates; worked as ball boy for Atlanta Hawks
- **2000** — Enrolled at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD); co-founded and co-captained the RISD Varsity Basketball Team
- **2005** — Graduated RISD with dual BFA in Graphic Design and Industrial Design; moved to San Francisco to work at Chronicle Books
- **2007** — Brian Chesky moved in; both quit jobs to start a company; inflated air mattresses in their living room sparked AirBed & Breakfast
- **2008** — Co-founded Airbnb with Brian Chesky and Nathan Blecharczyk
- **2009** — Airbnb officially launched; name shortened from AirBed & Breakfast
- **2015** — Named to Time Magazine 100 Most Influential People
- **2016** — Founded Samara as Airbnb's internal research and innovation team; Forbes 'America's Richest Entrepreneurs Under 40'
- **2020** — Airbnb IPO; Gebbia became a billionaire
- **2022** — Left full-time operating role at Airbnb (remained on board in advisory capacity)
- **2023** — Samara raised $41M Series A led by Thrive Capital (October)
- **2024** — Inducted into Texas Business Hall of Fame; Joe Gebbia documentary released (November)
- **2025-02** — Joined DOGE; appointed America's first Chief Design Officer, leading the National Design Studio
- **2025-05** — Delivered modernized federal retirement application system at OPM
- **2025-09** — Samara raised $34M Series B; company surpassed $100M in California project value
- **2026-01** — Samara installed first factory-built home for LA wildfire survivors (34 days from permit to installation); donated $15M in homes

## Achievements

- Co-founded Airbnb, which grew to an $85B+ company and changed how 1+ billion people experience travel
- Founded Samara, raising $75M total to build factory-assembled solar-ready backyard homes at scale
- Appointed America's first Chief Design Officer by President Trump (February 2025)
- Donated $15M in Samara factory-built homes to LA wildfire survivors (2026)
- Samara achieved over $100M in California project value within 12 months
- Signed the Giving Pledge; recognized as one of 'America's 50 Biggest Charity Donors' (2021)
- Named Time 100 Most Influential People (2015)
- Texas Business Hall of Fame inductee (2024)
- Harvard Business School Club of NYC Entrepreneur of the Year (2017)
- Led launch of fully online federal retirement application system (2025)

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Samara installed first factory-built home for LA wildfire survivors in Altadena; company donated $15M in homes through non-profit Steadfast LA
- **2025-09** — Samara raised $34M Series B led by Thrive Capital, bringing total funding to $75M; company surpassed $100M in California project value
- **2025-05** — As Chief Design Officer, led launch of fully online retirement application system for federal employees at OPM
- **2025-02** — Joined DOGE and appointed as America's first Chief Design Officer, leading the National Design Studio to modernize 27,000 federal websites
- **2024-11** — Joe Gebbia documentary released on YouTube

## Links

- Website: https://joegebbia.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jgebbia/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/jgebbia

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/joe-garcia
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-26