Ten years ago, Pavel Durov had already made a name for himself in tech as the founder of VKontakte (VK). To those who knew him, he was always ambitious, gifted, and academically brilliant, having graduated from St. Petersburg State University with a degree in philology. His first venture with VK, which he co-founded in 2006, grew to be Russia’s largest social media platform and earned him the nickname “Russian Zuckerberg”.
By the age of 28, he had developed the idea for a new messaging app, and in 2013, Telegram was born. In just ten years, Telegram had amassed a user base of over 950 million, making him the 120th richest person in the world with an estimated net worth of $15.5 billion.
Today, however, the tech mogul finds himself under arrest, facing charges tied to the moderation of illegal content on his messaging platform, as he is investigated by French authorities.
The 39-year old leads a nomadic life travelling between countries, with citizenship in Dubai where Telegram is headquartered, St. Kitts and Nevis, and France, the country where he was recently arrested.
A dedicated fitness enthusiast and vegetarian who does not drink alcohol, Durov places a high value on freedom, as he once expressed on Instagram “To be truly free, you should be ready to risk everything for freedom.”
Though he has never been married and said he “prefers to live alone” he is the father of 100 biological children.
The Telegram founder was born in 1984 in St. Petersburg but spent much of his childhood in Turin, Italy, where his father, a doctor of philological sciences, was working. He later returned to Russia to study.
In his early twenties and just after graduating he co-founded VK. However, Durov’s tenure at VK ended after he refused to cooperate with the Russia secret service and provide encrypted data relating to Ukrainian protestors and opposition leaders.
Durov wrote: “I was fired from the company I founded and was forced to leave Russia. I lost my company and my home, but would do it again – without hesitation.”
He sold his stake in VK for an estimated $3b – $4b and fled to Dubai in early 2024.
It was during his time in Dubai that he and his brother Nikolai developed the Telegram messaging service. Nikolai is a computer programmer and has a PhD in mathematics. As one of the platform’s key developers, Nikolai is also wanted by French authorities.
Durov has consistently criticised the surveillance practices of governments and tech giants. His advocacy for individual freedom was the driving force behind Telegram, an app he said is intended to protect user privacy and allow uncensored communication that was kept away from government influence.
Earlier this year, Durov gave his first major interview in seven years with American political commentator Tucker Carlson. He vowed that Telegram aims to be a “neutral platform” and not a “player in geopolitics.”
However, Telegram has been criticised for its role in facilitating the spread of extremist content and misinformation. The nature of the app makes it difficult to monitor and regulate which has created a haven for terrorists and child predators.
In 2018, Russia banned access to Telegram after Durov refused to grant the FSB to encryption keys to view communication relating to “counter terrorism” and “extremism”.
Although Telegram remained accessible for the majority of resident, thousands of Russians protested against the government decision. The ban was eventually lifted in 2020. Telegram has since become a key communication tool for the Russian military.
The tech entrepreneur leads a relatively private life and rarely agrees to being interviewed. In 2019, he announced that he had given up food to improve “clarity of thought” as he said it was for the benefit of the app users, stating: “If I manage to come up with new great ideas for Telegram during the fast, it will be beneficial for all of the millions of Telegram users.”
Posting on his Telegram channel in July, he revealed that he has over 100 biological children in 12 countries after donating his sperm to a clinic. Durov said he would like to “open-source” his DNA to help his biological children find each other more easily.
Durov has five children with two women he had previous relationships. Since his arrest, a Swiss criminal complaint has surfaced alleging that Durov committed acts of violence against one of his children.
According to Forbes, his former partner Irina Bolgarar filled the suit along with a civil case to strip the Telegram founder of his parental rights. Bolgarar also claims that Durov went back on his word to pay €150,000 in monthly child support.
