Besty AI: Taking the “Management” Out of Property Management
Announcing Ridge Ventures’ co-lead investment in Besty AI’s seed round
Say hello to Besty AI, the newest addition to The Ridge Familia! Besty is an AI messaging solution for property management, serving owners and managers of short-term rental (STR) properties by automating guest communications and revenue optimization.
Besty recently announced its seed round, co-led by Ridge with our friends at Bungalow Capital, who introduced us to the founders. The funding follows an impressive beta launch in which Besty grew its paying customers from 0 to 250 in less than a year.
Besty’s momentum makes it clear: The STR market is eager to ride the AI wave. Guest comms is an obvious top priority. After all, many of us have heard a vacation rental horror story, or (gulp) experienced one firsthand, and the common denominator is often poor communication. Now, STRs can generate positive guest experiences while capitalizing on upselling opportunities — all on autopilot.
Thanks to Besty’s “two-click setup” process, in just a few minutes STR property managers can enable 24/7, automated guest communications with this suite of AI-powered tools:
AI Messaging. Besty reduces response times by 96%. It can speak any language and seamlessly adopt a brand’s unique voice. Managers can view messaging usage via a real-time dashboard, including autopilot upsells and responses to guests.
AI Upselling. Besty helps fill booking gaps and “orphan nights.” Using the details of their last stay, it automatically reaches out to past guests and sends an offer to come back. Additional revenue is generated via smart early check-in.
AI Operations. Besty posts hyper-personalized review responses, and tracks real-time sentiment of all current and future guests. Based on messages and reviews, Besty auto-detects and assigns tasks.
Besty is a phenomenal application of AI that fills a very specific need, and with scrappy co-founders Sam Dundas and Aarlo Stonefish behind the controls, the product will continue to evolve and find more ways to save property managers time and revenue.
Since entering beta last October, Besty has serviced 200+ operators around the globe: 15K rental properties in more than 25 countries. In addition to its hundreds of STR users, Besty AI’s software partners include Guesty, Hostaway, and Lodgify, among others.
Clearly, the Besty AI train is moving fast, and we’re proud to be along for the ride. Congrats to Sam and Aarlo on the big milestone — and the many more to come!
Want to see Besty AI in action? Book a demo with co-founder Sam Dundas here.
Besty is also on the lookout for founding engineers.
