Everyone knows that the creator of the popular social network VKontakte (VK) is Pavel Durov. It is also known that the Telegram messaging app is one of his projects.

 

Over the past three years, Durov has often appeared in the media in connection with the creation of the Telegram Open Network (TON). darknet platform.

 

However, few know that behind Pavel is a team of programmers who help him realize his ambitious projects. Among those programmers is his older brother, Nikolai Durov.

 

 

Who is Nikolai Durov?

 

Nikolai Durov is a Russian programmer and mathematician, and the founder of The Open Network (TON). He is the older brother of Pavel Durov, together they founded the social networking site VK and later the encrypted messaging app Telegram.

 

Early Life and Education

 

Nikolai Durov is the brother of Pavel Durov and the son of Valery Durov, a Doctor of Philological Sciences and professor of philology during Nikolai’s college years at Saint Petersburg State University.

 

He won gold medals at the International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) in all three years of his participation, namely 1996, 1997, and 1998.

 

In addition, he also earned three silver medals and one gold medal at the International Informatics Olympiad from 1995 to 1998.

 

Nikolai was also a member of the Saint Petersburg State University ACM team, which won the ACM Student International Programming Contest in 2000 and 2001.

 

He obtained his first Ph.D. degree from Saint Petersburg State University in 2005 with a dissertation entitled “New Approaches to Arakelov Geometry”.

 

He continued his studies at the University of Bonn and earned his second Ph.D. in 2007 under the guidance of Gerd Faltings with a dissertation on Arakelov singular geometry.

 

Career and Tech Contributions

 

Nikolai Durov is a mathematician and bilingual programming specialist with a passion for connecting smart technology with opportunity.

 

His companies have products that reach over 300,000,000 people (100,000,000 Vkontakte users and 200,000,000 Telegram users).

 

He is responsible for programming the infrastructure for these products, which represent assets worth over $2,000,000,000.

 

He has worked with world-class programmers to create publicly accessible products and is a senior researcher at the Mathematics Department of the V.A. Steklov Institute in Saint Petersburg.

 

Experienced in independently building large infrastructures to manage mass products, Nikolai has also won international gold medals in Mathematical Olympiads.

 

Research and Research in the World of Mathematics

 

Nikolai Durov introduced commutative algebraic monads as a generalization of local objects in extended algebraic geometry.

 

Within this framework, several versions of tropical geometry, absolute geometry over fields with one element, and algebraic analogs of Arakelov geometry have been realized.

 

He is a senior researcher at the Laboratory of Algebra and Number Theory at the Saint Petersburg Department of the Steklov Institute of Mathematics, Russian Academy of Sciences.

 

Technology and Innovation: Contributions to Telegram and TON

 

Nikolai Durov was the lead developer of the VK team until 2013. Nikolai, along with his brother Pavel Durov, founded Telegram and designed the MTProto protocol for the platform in 2013.

 

His contributions to Telegram include the development of the platform’s encryption protocol, which is the main attraction of Telegram as a secure communication tool.

 

Durov is also a co-founder of The Open Network (TON) and author of the original TON whitepaper.

 

 

Controversy with the French Government

 

Meanwhile, on August 24, 2024, Nikolai’s brother, Pavel Durov, was arrested in France after arriving in the country.

 

The arrest was facilitated by the French National Anti-Fraud Office on various charges related to alleged illegal activities by Telegram users that were reportedly not monitored by the service.

 

French authorities accused Telegram of having “almost non-existent cooperation” with law enforcement, especially in cases involving crimes such as terrorism, drug and stolen goods trafficking, fraud and more.

 

Nikolai’s lower profile and the technical nature of his contributions to Telegram make him a less visible target even though he also faces charges.

 

The international community, including the Foreign Ministry of the United Arab Emirates, showed interest and said in a statement that they were “closely following” the Pavel Durov case.

 

In addition, they have “submitted a request to the French government to provide all consular services immediately” as Pavel Durov is a UAE citizen.

 

“Caring for citizens, safeguarding their interests, following their affairs, and providing all forms of protection are top priorities for the UAE,” the ministry said.

 

Conclusion: Nikolai Durov’s Impact and Legacy

 

Nikolai Durov has made significant contributions to the worlds of technology and mathematics, with influence that spans from the creation of large digital platforms to the discovery of new concepts in algebraic geometry.

 

As the brains behind the technical infrastructure of VKontakte and Telegram, he played a crucial role in developing two of the world’s largest communication platforms, each serving hundreds of millions of users.

 

Telegram, in particular, has received great attention thanks to its secure encryption protocol, developed by Nikolai, making it one of the most trusted communication tools in the world.

 

As a mathematician, Nikolai also left an intellectual legacy through innovations in the field of algebraic geometry and his participation in international Olympiads, demonstrating his expertise at the top of academia.

 

His works in mathematics, particularly in Arakelov geometry and commutative algebraic monads, made new contributions to the discipline. However, Nikolai’s career was not entirely free of controversy.

 

Despite being considered a safe and censorship-free platform, Telegram is often criticized by governments for its lack of cooperation in law enforcement efforts related to criminal activity.

 

Although Nikolai tends to keep a low profile, his substantial contributions to Telegram have made him embroiled in the controversy surrounding the app.

 

The arrest of his brother, Pavel Durov, shows how the security and privacy aspects of technology can trigger tensions with authorities.

 

Ultimately, Nikolai Durov’s legacy is a blend of technological and mathematical innovation, influencing how the world communicates while remaining inseparable from the spotlight on the social and legal repercussions of his contributions.

 

FAQ

 

1. Who is Nikolai Durov?

Nikolai Durov is a programmer, mathematician, and founder of The Open Network (TON). He is also the main developer of Telegram Messenger and the older brother of Pavel Durov.

2. What is Nikolai Durov’s most notable academic achievement?

Nikolai won the gold medal at the International Mathematical Olympiad three times and earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from Saint Petersburg State University and the University of Bonn.

3. What role did Nikolai Durov play in the development of Telegram?

Nikolai Durov is the lead developer of Telegram and the creator of the MTProto protocol, on which the platform’s encryption is based, making it one of the most secure encrypted messaging apps.

4. What is Nikolai Durov’s contribution to the world of mathematical research?

Nikolai introduced the concept of commutative algebraic monads and conducted research in tropical geometry and Arakelov geometry. He is a senior researcher at the Steklov Department of Mathematics, Russia.

5. Why are Telegram and Nikolai Durov involved in a controversy with the French government?

Telegram was accused by the French government of lack of cooperation in a case involving illegal activities on its platform.

While Nikolai’s lower profile makes him less visible, he is still linked to the controversy because of his role at Telegram.

 

Related Tags: World Crypto Figures