Airbnb ($PRIVATE:AIRBNB) is still in growth mode, and still on its way to public markets - the Wall Street Journal reported late Friday that the company's first quarter growth rate was 30%, and that it is likely to make a market debut in 2020. 

And a look at the alternative data shows why investors will be so bullish on the home sharing startup next year - even if 2019 is creating plenty of opportunities for white-hot startups to cash in with a spashy IPO. 

The alternative data certainly matches the Journal's sourcing - according to our tracking of Airbnb staffers who identify as current workers on LinkedIn, current employees have risen more than 29% in 2019. And, it's still posting jobs at a record clip. Since mid-March job postings have risen about 60%, and by number, Airbnb job postings are hovering around their all-time high. 

Our third chart tracks the trajectory at which Airbnb has had its app downloaded by users of the Google Play ($GOOG) platform. Here, we can track growth of more than 250,000 users from 2018 to our last date in the year. Further, from the first date data is track-able in 2019, to current day, users grew another 250,000-plus - with more than a full quarter to go in the year. 

And last but not least - the chart that should have investors psyched the most - is the already-high, still-growing trajectory of the company's ratings, themselves. Keep in mind - just like the last chart, this is just a metric tracking consumers' engagement with Airbnb through the Google Play platform - so there is more data to come, once Airbnb gets around to filing IPO paperwork. Based on its data, it could already be the biggest IPO of 2020. 

About the Data: 

Thinknum tracks companies using information they post online - jobs, social and web traffic, product sales and app ratings - and creates data sets that measure factors like hiring, revenue and foot traffic. Data sets may not be fully comprehensive (they only account for what is available on the web), but they can be used to gauge performance factors like staffing and sales. 

Further Reading: 

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