> A decade ago, the exciting short-term rental story was the wave of companies trying to fix the physical layer, with consistency, operations, quality control, and reliability. They weren’t marketplaces; they were trying to be hospitality companies.
> [...]
> These companies failed because hospitality is operations disguised as real estate disguised as tech. Short-term rentals look scalable until you meet the reality of cleaning coordination, maintenance, customer support, local regulation, and a product that physically degrades.

https://skift.com/2026/01/15/the-thrill-is-gone-airbnb-and-the-crisis-of-imagination-in-short-term-rentals/