Citing people familiar with the matter, the news outlet said the deal would value the combined company at more than $2.5 billion. Sonder itself is already a unicorn with a $1.3 billion valuation as of its $170 million Series E round in June 2020. Sonder, founded as “Flatbook” by Francis Davidson and Lucas Pellan in 2012, leases apartments or entire buildings from landlords, spruces them up and rents out units over flexible timelines, anywhere from one night to two years. It provides hotel-like amenities along with service from staff reachable by text 24 hours a day, according to its website. San Francisco-based Sonder operates in more than 30 cities in eight countries, has more than 4,500 listings worldwide, and has had more than 1 million guests, according to the site.