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The App That Went Against The World š
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Finlay Williams
October 27, 2024
2 minute wacky businesses, you can tell your buddies about š§
Telegram is a private messaging, ad-free platform for 700 million users worldwide, built on one manās relentless quest to provide secure communication beyond the reach of governments and corporations. Pavel Durov, the āRussian Zuckerberg,ā created Telegram after Russia effectively pushed him out of his first massive success, VKontakte (VK), over privacy disputes. Now worth $15.5 billion, Durov built Telegram into a messaging giant, all while dodging authorities, refusing ads, and fending off every attempt to reign him in.
Forced Exits and Government Trolling š§
Telegramās story starts with Durov, a university kid in St. Petersburg, who turned VK into Russiaās biggest social network by 2014, beating Facebook at its own game on Russian soil. But when the Russian government pressured him to share user data, he refused, and VK was taken over by Kremlin-linked interests. Durov fled, funded himself with $300 million stashed in Swiss banks, and started Telegram in 2013 alongside his cryptographer brother, Nikolai. Now headquartered in Dubai, Telegram champions user privacy to the extent that governments (Russia, France) have tried, and failed, to get Durov to hand over encryption keys.
Telegram doesnāt work like other tech giants. Itās not ad-supported, and until recently, Durov personally financed its growth. In 2022, to cover mounting costs, he introduced a premium subscription with extra features, letting die-hard users support Telegram without the usual monetisation pitfalls. The app has grown into a lifeline for activists, journalists, and anyone who values unbreakable privacy. Naturally this attracted some heat.
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āļø Origin: After his dramatic exit from Russia, Durov secured Saint Kitts and Nevis citizenship by donating $250,000 to their Sugar Industry Diversification Foundation. With $300 million stashed in Swiss banks, he was free to launch his next venture, Telegram in 2013. A platform built on encrypted messaging and total user privacy. Initially headquartered in Berlin, Telegram later moved to Dubai (because where else).
āļø Inflection Moment: After relocating to Dubai, Telegram gained traction as a secure, private platform for anyone from journalists to political activists. But Durovās aversion to compromise came to a head in 2018 when he tried to fund Telegram through a $1.7 billion ICO (Initial Coin Offering) for a blockchain project, TON (Telegram Open Network). The project was shut down by the SEC for violating U.S. financing laws, leaving Telegram without the funds it expected. Rather than give up or sell out, Durov kept the app afloat himself, preserving Telegramās commitment to privacy.
āļø Funding: Telegramās funding approach is a solo entrepreneurās dream, and nightmare. Durov has covered costs the entire time. In 2022, he introduced a Premium tier to let loyal users support the app while keeping it ad-free. Itās a bold move to depend on user loyalty rather than outside investors or ads, but Telegramās devoted user base bought in. Durov remains in control, refusing to bend Telegramās principles for financial relief. All this is great, but Telegramās 2023 financial statements show that the company had a net loss of $259 million, so itās come at a cost.
āļø Big Moves: Despite attempts from the Russian government to block Telegram in 2018 (a move that failed due to Telegramās clever use of domain fronting to evade the blocks), Telegram persisted, and in 2020, Russia finally lifted the block. This victory solidified Telegramās image as a platform resistant to government control. And while other platforms would have felt pressured to comply, Telegram stuck to its guns, gaining users who saw it as a defender of free speech.
āļø Arrest & Resilience: In August 2024, Durov was detained in France over Telegramās lack of content moderation and refusal to cooperate with law enforcement, accused of complicity in criminal activities. Durov was quoted saying he always avoided Europe over this fear, but he had to go to France for ālunch with president Macronā, Macron denied thisā¦ Despite facing potential prison time and a ā¬6 million bail, Durovās stance on user privacy didnāt waver. His defiance against authorities only solidified Telegramās reputation as a platform committed to free speech, even under pressure.
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