Pavel Durov slams Mark Zuck, calls WhatsApp a cheap copycat of Telegram

Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov is going directly after Mark Zuckerberg and WhatsApp, accusing the Meta-owned messaging app of stealing features and launching smear campaigns.

In a post on his official Telegram channel, Pavel said the company has started its first contest for content creators to make viral videos exposing how Telegram has led the industry for years while WhatsApp follows behind.

Pavel claimed, “We’ve caught WhatsApp running smear PR campaigns against Telegram, so it’s only fair we hit back.” He described WhatsApp as a platform for users “trapped in the past,” relying on delayed, stripped-down copies of innovations Telegram introduced first.

Telegram has now listed 30 different features it brought to market before WhatsApp, and Pavel made it clear that the list isn’t even complete. The goal is to inform users and expose the ongoing pattern of copying. Pavel added, “That’s why we’re not worried about WhatsApp trying to catch up with us — we’re too far ahead.” The contest comes with a $50,000 prize and runs through May 26.

Durov accuses Meta of stealing, lobbying, and hiding behind PR

Now, Telegram and WhatsApp have competed in the same space since Telegram launched in 2013. The following year, Meta bought WhatsApp for $19 billion. Just days after the deal, WhatsApp suffered a major outage that sent nearly 5 million users flocking to Telegram in a single day. That sudden jump marked a turning point, as Telegram began branding itself as the secure alternative.

Since then, Pavel has used every opportunity to discredit WhatsApp’s handling of user data. He’s described WhatsApp as a “surveillance tool” and a “honeypot”, warning that its system design makes it easy for hackers and state actors to gain access to user phones.

In 2019, Pavel went as far as urging users to delete the app, claiming it created a backdoor for spying. The same pattern continued in 2021, when WhatsApp changed its privacy policy to integrate deeper with Meta services. Pavel publicly mocked Meta, pointing out the irony of them building an entire department just to figure out how Telegram kept growing.

While Telegram boasts more than 1 billion active users as of 2025, WhatsApp still dominates with over 2 billion, but that hasn’t stopped the attacks. Pavel maintains that his platform’s growth is due to transparency and independence — Telegram doesn’t run ads and doesn’t depend on outside investors.

But admittedly, Telegram doesn’t enable end-to-end encryption by default, a feature WhatsApp has across all chats, so that’s something.

Past tension, public jabs, and legal heat come to the surface

The tension between the two CEOs isn’t new. When Pavel was still running VK, Russia’s version of Facebook, he met Zuck in 2009. Pavel later claimed that Meta copied VK’s app platform based on ideas he discussed during that meeting. He said Meta implemented features based on “what I told them we did,” accusing them of long-term imitation.

In 2024, Pavel criticized WhatsApp again, this time calling it a “cheap, watered-down imitation of Telegram” and accusing Meta of using lobbying and PR firms to try and slow down Telegram’s expansion. He said that despite this, Telegram remains financially independent, a claim he uses to contrast his company with WhatsApp’s full reliance on Meta.

In 2025, when Zuck said Meta would drop fact-checkers from its platforms, Pavel responded by calling him an “opportunist” who only uses the idea of free speech when it suits him. He said Zuck lacks the conviction of people like Elon Musk, who take a more open stance on information sharing.

All in all, Pavel and Zuck represent two sides of the same coin. One refuses to bow to authorities and maintains full control of his platform without ads or oversight. The other plays by the rules moderates content, and protects his legal standing. But both face criticism – either for enabling criminals or suppressing freedom.

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