We have the rules we have for hotels because they're typically large buildings with many rooms (often smaller than even the minimum dwelling size for private apartments) and that density presents significant safety hazards to many people should anything happen, not just you. You being in a 100sf room on the 11th floor makes it very hard to not have you die if there's a fire, especially when there's hundreds of you to evacuate.
There's no reason that someone say...renting out a detached single story house should need anything more than a working smoke/CO detector.
For my recent Airbnb stay I couldn't fault it. Was more than I expected and great value.
I'm tired of over-priced hotels with boring rooms and mandatory daily room service. I want the option of not having my bed made and towels replaced every day. Stay out of my room until I check out!
And there are also "serviced apartments" that only clean once a week.
The savings aren't big but I do take advantage of tem.
There's no reason we shouldn't require things that are effectively hotel rooms to comply with hotel safety regulations.
If AirBNB can only operate by violating the law, why should we support their business model?