SINGAPORE, 23 September 2026: Airbnb has appointed company veteran Zhiqiu Kong as Regional Director for Asia, underscoring its commitment to strengthening its leadership across Asia.

Zhiqiu Kong

Building on his success leading Airbnb’s China operations, Zhiqiu Kong will bring his experience in driving sustainable growth to the broader Asia region. Home to the world’s largest Gen Z population and a rapidly expanding traveller base, Asia continues to shape global travel trends and remains central to Airbnb’s long-term growth strategy. 

“With around one-third of global travel demand, Asia is at the forefront of shaping the future of travel,” said Zhiqiu Kong.

“In our continued efforts to better understand the unique needs and wants of Asian travellers, we will make Airbnb the most desirable way to explore the world authentically.”

As Regional Director for Asia, Zhiqiu Kong oversees Airbnb’s business operations across China, Japan, Korea, India and Southeast Asia.

He joined Airbnb more than a decade ago and has held leadership roles spanning product innovation, growth and business strategy.

Reporting to Zhiqiu Kong, Michael He will step into the role of Country Manager for China, with more than nine years of experience working at Airbnb. Most recently, he was Business and Growth Operations Lead for the China market.

(Source: Airbnb)