However, 2023 is off to a strong start. The volume of bookings reached a record high, at 121 million for the quarter, compared to 102 million last year at the same time. The volume of accommodations offered on the platform is growing at a comparable rate, by 18%, and revenues are up by 20%.

Airbnb has finally made its users absorb pronounced price increases. After a stall last year, the volume and average value of transactions - $168 per night, compared to $122 four years ago - are back on the rise.

However, the stream of criticism has not stopped: Airbnb is still criticized for its multiple additional fees; its owners are fussy; and its offer is less and less competitive with the "all-inclusive" services of hotel competitors.

Management is not turning a deaf ear and remains determined to improve the experience. It is to better immerse himself in this that founder Brian Chesky has spent the last six months living among the rentals offered on his platform.

On paper, Airbnb is delivering a first quarter in the green for the first time in its history. Historically, only the third quarter of the year - corresponding to the summer vacations - was profitable. And even then, on an "adjusted" operating income basis.

One nuance, however: for the quarter just ended, including stock option compensation, operations remained negative; in fact, the company owes its profitability to its $8 billion in excess cash and to rising interest rates.

Caution is also called for with the perhaps overly aggressive communication on the so-called "free cash flow" achieved this quarter. This cash that comes in - corresponding to bookings made by users - does not belong entirely to Airbnb; it will be redistributed to hosts, minus the 15% commission charged by the platform.

Like Uber, the other emblem of the new economy discussed last week in these columns, Airbnb is giving guarantees of the viability of its business model to the market. The market remains cautious, and rightly so, even though with an enterprise value of $62 billion - the market capitalization minus excess cash - the platform is valued at x6 its expected revenue in 2023.

Both groups are exposed to similar legal risks, and neither has demonstrated a sustainable ability to generate operating profits. Airbnb, as we have seen, has the advantage of an excellent financial position, unlike Uber, which has to deal with significant debt.

This is a far cry from the financial performance of Booking - a position in MarketScreener's US portfolio - which is raking in huge profits on a real, not "adjusted", basis.