Why we invested in localbird

We’re thrilled to be leading Localbird’s seed round and partnering with the team as they build the operating layer for guest experiences within the short-term rental ecosystem. With Localbird, hosts can deliver a true 5-star, hotel-grade concierge experience, enabling travellers to discover and book curated, memorable activities while allowing hosts to increase revenue and monetize their most valuable asset: their guests.

The Rise of Experiential Travel and the Broken Value Chain

Travel is one of the largest consumer categories in the world, accounting for more than $1T in annual spend, with the market for experiences representing a ~$300BN opportunity and growing double-digits annually.

Travelers are increasingly prioritizing connection, authenticity, and memorable moments over traditional tourism touchpoints and yet the infrastructure powering these experiences remains outdated. Most platforms focus on mass-market inventory and existing platforms still behave like consumer OTAs which are optimized for volume, not personalization or trust. Moreover, according to a 2023 study, an overwhelming 47% of bookings happen offline via WhatsApp, phone calls, or traditional travel agents.

In parallel, the vacation rental market has exploded. Hosts and property managers are increasingly seeking ways to differentiate the guest experience, unlock incremental revenue to offset margin compression, and scale service without adding operational overhead.

Enter Localbird

Localbird is building an AI-powered, host-embedded concierge platform that connects travelers to curated, local experiences which are delivered through a trusted channel, their host.

This unique host-first go-to-market flips the traditional model; guests discover and book experiences through the host, not through an app store download or search ad. Hosts earn a commission on every booking. Turning experience curation from a cost center into a profit center, and vendors receive high-intent demand from premium travelers without paid marketing.

This model unlocks what platforms like Airbnb, GetYourGuide, and Klook cannot; distribution built on trust, not paid acquisition. It also brings offline, curated local supply online starting in destinations where tech platforms have historically struggled to scale.

Localbird currently supports ~20 destinations across Latin America and the US with a focus on luxury and upper-mid-scale vacation markets such as Costa Rica, Mexico, and Lake Tahoe.

Why We’re Excited

At Ibex, we are constantly looking for category-defining companies that challenge traditional perceptions and create fundamental shifts in large markets. Localbird is not another travel marketplace; it is a new distribution model and monetization layer for the experience economy. If today’s OTAs won the booking battle, we believe Localbird can win the in-destination engagement layer.

Localbird has achieved two key marketplace breakthroughs: a host-driven distribution engine that delivers demand at exceptionally low CAC, and a trusted unique supply-unlock model that surfaces curated, high-quality experiences. This is what strong early marketplace signals look like.

Ben and Joseph are obsessed with this market. They didn’t just identify this problem - they lived it firsthand as travelers and operators, then spent years on the ground in Costa Rica and Mexico validating every assumption, building vendor relationships, and refining a playbook city by city.

We are thrilled to partner with Ben, Joseph, and the Localbird team to build the travel experience platform we wish existed in every stay around the world.