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I have fathered 100 biological children despite being unmarried — Telegram CEO

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39-year-old founder and Chief Executive Officer of Telegram Messenger app, Mr Pavel Durov, has recounted how he had 100 biological children around the world despite being unmarried.

The tech mogul, known for his eccentric lifestyle and penchant for privacy, revealed he’s been an anonymous sperm donor for the past 15 years.

According to Durov, despite his decision to remain single and alone, his journey into mass sperm donation began after his friend approached him to donate his sperm in a clinic, which he agreed to and resulted in him assisting over 12 families all over the world have kids due to what he described as ”high-quality donor material’.

While recounting, Durov said, “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. 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 realising 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.

“Fast forward to 2024, 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.”

Meanwhile, Elon Musk, who’s also a fan of making babies, responded to Durov’s revelation with a tweet, “Rookie numbers,” he said while mentioning Gengis Khan, who had over 100 children with nearly 500 wives. Musk himself is father to 12 known children, though not through sperm donation.

Durov’s claim of a worldwide, “quality” sperm shortage aligns with global trends. Increased demand for donor sperm, driven by infertility issues, single women seeking motherhood, and same-sex couples, has outpaced supply in many regions. Regulatory challenges, cultural factors, and personal barriers contribute to the shortage.

The Telegram founder is a Russian-born Emirati entrepreneur. In 2022, he was recognized as the richest expat in the United Arab Emirates, according to Forbes. In February 2023, Arabian Business named him the most powerful entrepreneur in Dubai.