#482 – Pavel Durov: Telegram, Freedom, Censorship, Money, Power & Human Nature

Where this was said

Money

At 3:49:37 · chapter starts 3:47:13

The economics of Telegram are fascinating precisely because they run counter to the dominant model of internet monetization. Durov invested hundreds of millions of his own money into Telegram, takes a salary of one UAE dirham (one-third of a dollar), never sold a share, and never extracted more from the company than he put in. The path to profitability required genuine product innovation: the Telegram Premium subscription, launched in 2022 at roughly $4-5/month, bundled over 50 additional features for power users and now has more than 15 million subscribers generating more than $500 million in annual revenue ^{[1] — Pavel Durov "Telegram profitable in 2024: Telegram became profitable for the first time in 2024, generating over $500 million in annual premium subscrip…" 3:43:45 Play} . Context-based advertising (ads matched to the topic of a channel, not to personal user data) provides additional revenue, though Durov estimates this generates only about 20% of what targeted advertising would — meaning Telegram deliberately leaves 80% of ad revenue on the table to preserve its principles. The third revenue stream is a 5% commission on in-app purchases made through Telegram's mini-app platform, where third-party developers build games, tools, and services that operate inside Telegram. Durov mentions individuals who have earned $10-12 million single-handedly from mini apps in a matter of months. The broader point is that it is possible to run a massively profitable internet business without exploiting personal data — but it requires constant innovation and the willingness to accept less money in exchange for maintaining values.