Pavel Durov, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Telegram Messenger, has shared an astonishing personal revelation: he is the biological father of over 100 children worldwide, despite never having been married.
The 39-year-old entrepreneur disclosed this surprising fact through his popular Telegram channel on Monday evening.
According to Durov, his journey into sperm donation began 15 years ago when a friend, facing fertility issues, asked him to donate sperm at a clinic. Although initially taken aback, Durov agreed to help.
Reflecting on his decision, Durov recounted, “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? Fifteen years ago, a friend approached me with a weird request, stating 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.”
He continued, “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.”
Now, in 2024, Durov’s donations have helped over a hundred couples in 12 countries to conceive.
Remarkably, years after he stopped being a donor, at least one IVF clinic still has his frozen sperm available for use by families seeking to have children.
Durov hinted at plans to open-source his DNA to facilitate connections with his biological children, despite potential risks.
He maintained, “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.”
Durov also encouraged healthy men to consider sperm donation to support families struggling with infertility.
