eBay Wishes It Could Buy Airbnb But Can't Afford The Startup's $2.5 Billion Price Tag

eBay CEO John Donahoe has been a mentor to Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky for a few years. The tech executives were introduced by Netscape founder and startup investor Marc Andreessen, who told Donahoe that Chesky was the "smartest founder in Silicon Valley," TechCrunch's Leena Rao reports.

(Sorry, Mark Zuckerberg)

Yesterday, Donahoe and Chesky took the stage at Fortune's Brainstorm Conference in Aspen, Colorado. There, Donahoe said just how much he respects Airbhb and Chesky.

Donahoe said he'd love to buy Airbnb but at a $2.5 billion valuation, it's too expensive. He also said he believes Airbnb will be "one of the more successful startups of this generation." Airbnb is a peer to peer, short-term home rental platform.