Pavel Durov, the founder and owner of the encrypted messaging app Telegram, is making headlines yet again. Often referred to as a Russian Elon Musk, Durov is a programming prodigy and billionaire entrepreneur. In fact, he is the richest man in Dubai with a net worth of a whopping $17.1 billion according to Forbes. No, he is not an Emirati, but has roots back in the Soviet Union. Though he holds both French and Emirati citizenship, Durov was born in the former Soviet Union and has cultivated an air of mystery that extends beyond his business dealings. His recent conversation with podcaster Lex Fridman has once again grabbed eyeballs, particularly about his relationships and marital status. Let’s dive right in.
Early life and family
Born in 1984 in the then-Soviet Union, Durov comes from a family with a rich academic and military history. His family moved to Italy when he was 4 years old. Durov later returned to Russia when his father got a job at St Petersburg University, where he himself eventually attended for his education.His mother, Ivanenko (maiden name), has Ukrainian roots. The billionaire has earlier shared that he has some relatives back in Ukraine. He also has an elder brother, Nikolai Durov, who was part of the founding team of Telegram. Nikolai served as the lead developer, programmer, and architect of the project. In 2021, Pavel Durov was granted French citizenship. However, he moved himself and Telegram to Dubai in 2017, where he reportedly holds citizenship.
Is Pavel Durov married?
Pavel Durov remains unmarried. The billionaire confirmed last year that he has ‘never been married’, and ‘prefers to live alone.’ According to Forbes, the billionaire has five children that he shares with two ex-girlfriends.But that’s not all! He has over 100 biological children! Yes, that’s right. Though Durov hasn’t said ‘I do’ yet or met the love of his life, whom he wants to marry and grow older with, he has multiple biological children. In a post shared in July, 2024, Pavel Durov revealed how he may have fathered over 100 children.“I was just told that I have over 100 biological kids. How is this possible for a guy who has never been married and prefers to live alone?” he said, in a post shared on Telegram.
Credit: X/@PavelDurov
“Fifteen years ago, a friend of mine approached me with a weird request. He said that he and his wife couldn’t have kids due to a fertility issue and asked me to donate sperm at a clinic for them to have a baby. I laughed my ass off before realizing he was dead serious. The boss of the clinic told me that “high quality donor material” was in short supply and that it was my civic duty to donate more sperm to anonymously help more couples. This sounded crazy enough to get me to sign up for sperm donation,” he revealed. The billionaire said that his sperm donation may have helped over a “hundred couples in 12 countries to have kids”“Moreover, many years after I stopped being a donor, at least one IVF clinic still has my frozen sperm available for anonymous use by families who want to have kids,” he said.
Durov also revealed that he plans to open-source his DNA. “So that my biological children can find each other more easily. Of course, there are risks, but I don’t regret having been a donor. The shortage of healthy sperm has become an increasingly serious issue worldwide, and I’m proud that I did my part to help alleviate it.”
About the Author
