Better this than the Bot Company, which has been apparently renting out AirBnBs for robot testing and leaving them trashed: https://sfstandard.com/2026/05/28/sf-startup-secretly-testin...
Better this than the Bot Company, which has been apparently renting out AirBnBs for robot testing and leaving them trashed: https://sfstandard.com/2026/05/28/sf-startup-secretly-testin...
Actually shift should just partner with Airbnb. Airbnb takes out the cleaning fee from the app, customers benefit, owners get a free cleaning service, Airbnb wins, Shift wins. And if Airbnb invests in Shift, even better.
> Airbnb takes out the cleaning fee from the app
Why would they do that?
Airbnb should invest in Shift, continue to encourage exorbitant cleaning fees, and subsidize discounts for hosts so that they're incentivized to fire their current housekeeping providers and switch to Shift.
The fact that they're not partnering with Airbnb tells us what we need to know. The top of this thread is more likely now: they're interested in surveilling the people, not the buildings.
More like the tech doesn't work or scale (yet).
Seems like there is some synergy to be found here!
Good cop, bad cop
Errr, good bot, bad bot!
We need a captcha that differentiates between the two. I want to allow only good bots in my home.
Move fast, break things
I want this as a setting in my future cleaning robots.
Like your favorite lamp.
Isn't Airbnb 99% commercial nowadays? Who would leave their fav lamp in there?
Yes, nobody ever actually lives in them, they're just 24/7 airbnbs with a cleaning service.
Most airbnbs have completely uninspired interior decoration but I had a great one that I'll always remember for having really unique lighting (lots of layers and textures)
I think I’m happy for some privacy abuse oriented startup and an Airbnb landlord screwing each other. It seems like a good thing for the world.
I mean is it? At least the AirBnB owner has some recourse, any attempt to fight exploitation from “free services” goes nowhere
The article specifically mentions at least one property owner who has been denied any recourse because of the lack of before/after photos (presumably before that specific rental).
How do you rent out your place and don’t take any photos before?
I’m sure Airbnb operators get comfortable turning it over every few days without having to constantly take photos. Most guests don’t bring robots in to smash up the dishwasher and dent the walls
Sure but taking a photo of everything in its “good” state seems reasonable. You don’t need to constantly update the photos if nothing gets smashed.
We don’t really know the details. Perhaps they had “good state” photos that were rejected by Airbnb for not being recent enough.
At least the AirBnB owners got paid to have their homes mutalated by robots
If they’re suing, that seems to be insufficient.
Among other issues, it likely causes knock-on problems for tomorrow’s reservations.
Discussion on that one: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48317093
After thinking about this for a while, I'm not sure it really happened. It wouldn't surprise me if the house was not trashed, just a landlord manipulating evidence when they think they can make money in court. There is no particular reason to trust either side and we have not seen what evidence really exists. In particular the reporters didn't do a good job of digging in - at the very least where is the response from the Bot Company?
Who needs occam's razor when you've got a mobieus shaped breadknife?
That made me lol.
A company operating above board would be sure to carefully document the state of the rental before and after whatever work they were doing. Any tradesperson/installer/technician/repair person will have tales of how they were accused of stealing grandmas wedding ring from the bottom of the sock drawer while repairing a leak in the kitchen.
So either Bot Company damaged property and is trying to pretend they didn't. Or they are incompetent and failed to document the state of the property or handle the owners complaints appropriately.
Given that their training robots and would therefore be collecting as much data as possible, including camera data, I'm leaning towards malice instead of ignorance.
I don't entirely doubt the landlord but the bizzarre part is the landlord showing up to take their trash and then somehow finding bundles of wires inside the unit. Why would an airbnb host enter the unit to take trash?
That’s part of the process of resetting a property for the next reservation. It’s not bizarre, it’s literally what Airbnb landlords do (or sometimes hire other people to do, but that lowers margins)
"Why would an airbnb host enter the unit to take trash?"
Not every airbnb host has a professional cleaning staff, and some of those who do may sometimes wish to check the status of their property. I don't find anything strange, let alone "bizarre".
Mid visit though?
Does the un-regulation cut both ways? A landlord usually needs to notify tenants 24hr in advance if they're going to enter the property. Does an AirBnB host need to follow any similar rules? It's not like the renters have a lease, it's not their residence.. Do they have any rights to privacy or notice at all?
They said they saw the wires through the window. Presumably they didn't enter the unit.
I read that the host took the trash, which was outside the house, and through the window he saw the cables and the man with the laptop.
> The Bot Company did not respond to requests for comment
Could be a greedy landlord, but they did turn off his security cameras, so I'm giving him the benefit of doubt for now.
Security cameras inside an apartment for rent, what is essentially a hotel room? Is this common?
Sadly, yes: https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/how-to-...
Nothing in the article says the cameras are inside.
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