Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, has recently captured global attention after being arrested by French authorities on Saturday evening. Durov was detained at Le Bourget airport near Paris. The arrest of Pavel Durov is linked to an investigation into criminal activities on the messaging platform.
While this arrest is making headlines, there’s an interesting fact about Durov that might surprise many: despite never having been married, he has over 100 biological children. This extraordinary fact adds a unique twist to his already high-profile story.
Telegram CEO Pavel Durov recently revealed a surprising aspect of his personal life: he has fathered over 100 children. This revelation comes from his past involvement in sperm donation, an act he initially undertook at the request of a friend facing fertility challenges.
“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,” Durov wrote in a post on his Telegram Channel.
The clinic, facing a shortage of “high quality donor material,” convinced him to donate more sperm.
“My past donating activity has 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 revealed.
Durov also said that he plans to open-source his DNA to facilitate connections among his biological children. “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,” he added.