- Telegram founder Pavel Durov highlights the decline of digital freedom and privacy risks.
- Telegram launches Cocoon, a decentralized AI network for private computing.
- The initiative aims to protect user data while enabling AI services and mini-apps.
At the Blockchain Life 2025 summit in Dubai on October 30, Telegram founder Pavel Durov raised alarms about the growing threats to digital privacy.
Durov argued that users worldwide are losing control over their personal data, even in countries historically known for upholding privacy and free speech.
He emphasized that third-party corporations and governments are increasingly able to access and exploit personal information, creating a global risk for individual digital freedom.
During his keynote, Durov highlighted the necessity of using technology to defend user rights. “We must develop systems where AI and digital tools belong to the people, not corporations or governments,” he said, laying the groundwork for Telegram’s newest project.
Also Read: Telegram’s Pavel Durov Faces Third Interrogation in Paris Over Crime Links
Telegram Unveils Cocoon: A Private AI Network
Durov unveiled Cocoon, a blockchain-based private AI network designed to provide core AI features without compromising user privacy.
The network leverages Telegram’s existing ecosystem, including its mini-app platform and AI-powered chatbots, to offer services such as document summarization and message drafting without sending user data to centralized providers.
Cocoon is built on the Tone blockchain, where hardware owners can contribute GPU computing power in exchange for tokens. This setup allows developers and Telegram itself to access low-cost, transparent AI compute while maintaining full confidentiality for users.
Durov described the system as fully governed by free market dynamics, ensuring fair pricing and open access once a critical mass of developers and hardware providers joins the network.
The project aligns with Telegram’s broader strategy, which includes over a billion dollars generated through mini-apps in the past year alone and a growing suite of digital collectibles, branded as GIFTS.
These innovations have reinforced Telegram’s role as a platform not only for communication but for social engagement and monetization.
Durov Highlights Urgent Need to Protect Digital Freedoms
Beyond technology, Durov’s address carried a broader philosophical message. He stressed the urgent need to safeguard freedoms in the digital era, warning that declining focus, increasing distraction, and societal shifts are contributing to the erosion of privacy and civil liberties.
“People are becoming less rational, more emotional, and their freedoms are silently being stripped away,” he said, linking technological innovation to broader cultural responsibility.
Durov urged the audience to actively defend their rights through technology, politics, and society, calling for a unified effort to reclaim digital autonomy.
Telegram will serve as Cocoon’s first major customer, promoting the network as a model for how decentralized solutions can protect user privacy while enabling advanced digital services.
Also Read: Telegram’s Pavel Durov Faces Third Interrogation in Paris Over Crime Links
