Speaking at a press conference at the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, Lurie framed the donation as a model for the city's tech wealth.

"We have seen an extraordinary creation of wealth and innovation in our city," Lurie said. "And with that, comes enormous responsibility, opportunity, and obligation."

The mayor said he hoped the gift would spur other San Francisco-based entrepreneurs to invest in the city. "Now is the time; our city is coming back," he said. "Please, don't watch from the sidelines; be a part of it."

Chesky, who co-founded the short-term rental giant in 2008, said his success is tied to the city. "There is something truly special here in San Francisco," he said. "Much of my success, I attribute to the magic and to the community that is San Francisco."

According to the mayor's office, Chesky worked with Lurie for months on how to direct funding toward city-run services. Chesky said he wants the investment to help residents connect with one another, calling parks "the most vibrant way you can come together in a city."

"The best antidote to division is connection. That connection has to happen physically and in real spaces, and maybe the parks can be one of those places," he said.

The donation marks a warmer chapter in the relationship between Airbnb and City Hall. Under former Mayor London Breed, the company sued San Francisco for $120 million, arguing the city had miscalculated its tax bill. The litigation prompted labor unions, advocacy groups and some elected officials to call for an Airbnb boycott. The suit was settled earlier this year for $0.

Sarah Madland, general manager of the Recreation and Park Department, said the money is expected to arrive in two phases, with the first installment potentially landing as early as this year or in early 2027. That first portion is already committed to five projects that are underway but short on funding: $39 million for Rachele Sullivan Park in SoMa, renovations at Jackson Hill Playground in Potrero Hill, keeping Garfield Pool in the Mission open on Sundays, renovations at the Embarcadero, and completion of India Basin Waterfront Park in Hunters Point.

"These are projects that are ready to go and have broad community support, have plans in place, but we haven't been able to put together that last piece of funding," Madland said.

The department will spend the next year deciding how to allocate the second half of the gift, she said. Any funds must first be reviewed and approved by the Board of Supervisors.

Madland said the department has received roughly $300 million in donations over the past 15 years, but nothing at this scale. Before Chesky's gift, the largest private donation to city parks was $25 million from the John Pritzker Family Fund in 2019 to kickstart the India Basin project.

She called the gift "game-changing," noting that $100 million is about half the size of a typical general obligation bond — the voter-approved borrowing the city relies on for major capital projects.

"This is half as much as the amount of capital that we get almost every decade," she said.

Chesky's personal net worth is estimated at more than $13 billion, according to Forbes, and Airbnb is valued at roughly $100 billion.