Pavel Durov marks 41st birthday with dire warning: 'Time is running out to save free internet'
Telegram CEO and founder Pavel Durov marked his 41st birthday with a somber message on X, saying he has “no reason to celebrate.”
Durov expressed deep concern about the rapid erosion of digital freedoms, warning that the free Internet built by previous generations is being transformed into a tool of control, News.Az reports.
He criticized Western governments for adopting what he called “dystopian measures,” citing examples such as digital IDs in the UK, online age checks in Australia, and mass scanning of private messages in the EU.
According to Durov, Germany is punishing individuals for criticizing officials online, the UK is imprisoning people for their social media posts, and France is investigating tech leaders who advocate for freedom and privacy.
“The world is sliding toward a dark, dystopian future — and our generation may be remembered as the last to enjoy real freedom,” he warned.
Durov added that society has been misled into believing its mission is to dismantle the values inherited from past generations — including tradition, privacy, sovereignty, free markets, and free speech.
“By betraying our ancestors’ legacy, we are heading toward self-destruction — moral, intellectual, economic, and even biological,” he said.
Concluding his message, Durov declared that he would not celebrate his birthday, saying, “I’m running out of time. We are running out of time.”
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