"Why Don't They Send Me a Female Spy?" Billionaire CEO's Complaint ... Jealous of Jensen Huang?

[Financial News] Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov complained, asking, "Why don't they send me a female spy?" His remarks are seen as referring to NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, whose affair with Alison Huang, a woman linked to Chinese intelligence, recently came to light.
On the 11th (local time), Durov claimed on his X account (formerly Twitter), "It's unfair that CEOs who aren't interested in Asian women get fewer dating opportunities from intelligence agencies."
He asked, "Where are the honey traps from France, Russia and Iran?" and added, "Not a single female spy has approached me. Are they even making an effort?"
The honey trap Durov referred to is an operation in which intelligence agencies or others use romantic or sexual appeal to approach someone, build trust, and then extract information or exert influence.
Durov then joked, "I'll forgive France. Its decision-makers aren't interested in women," and added, "The other countries should try harder."
Durov's post carries even more significance given that he runs Telegram and is under surveillance in countries around the world, including Russia. Although Durov did not mention Huang by name in the post, its content suggests that it was an overt satire of Huang's affair and the espionage allegations surrounding him.
Durov was born in Leningrad (then in the Soviet Union; now Saint Petersburg). In 2006, when he graduated from university, he created VKontakte (VK), Russia's largest social networking service. He later moved abroad and launched Telegram with his older brother, Nikolai Durov.
Russian authorities later restricted Telegram's services, including by slowing connection speeds, saying it was not complying with Russian law, and fined it for allegedly failing to remove banned content. In July this year, Russia's Federal Financial Monitoring Service (Rosfinmonitoring) also added Durov to its list of terrorists and extremists, while the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) charged him in absentia the day before with supporting terrorist activities and placed him on an international wanted list.
He was arrested in 2024 at Le Bourget Airport in Paris, France, and investigated by French authorities on suspicion of abetting illegal activities on Telegram, including the distribution of child sexual abuse material. As the investigation continued, restrictions on his departure were eased, and he returned to Dubai, where he has been staying.
In addition to Russia, Durov holds citizenship in France, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Saint Kitts and Nevis. He also boasts a colorful personal life, having said that he has at least 100 children.
[email protected] Kim Hee-sun Reporter