Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov has taken direct aim at Meta-owned WhatsApp, calling it a “cheap copycat” and accusing it of launching smear campaigns against his platform.

His May 15 comments accompanied the announcement of a new $50,000 contest to showcase Telegram’s features. The competition will run until May 26.

‘Watered-down’

Durov said the contest will showcase Telegram’s long-standing innovation and leadership in messaging features.

According to Durov, WhatsApp users are stuck with delayed versions of features that Telegram had already introduced years ago. He asserted that the contest would help inform users and shift public attention to Telegram’s role as a trendsetter in the messaging space.

The Telegram founder said:

“It’s time to wake WhatsApp users up. They’re trapped in the past, using late, watered-down versions of innovations Telegram pioneered long before.”

The move marks a public escalation in the long-standing rivalry between the two messaging giants.

While WhatsApp boasts over 3 billion users worldwide and is widely adopted for its end-to-end encryption and recent privacy upgrades, Durov insists that Telegram remains the true innovator.

Superior innovation

Durov listed over 30 features Telegram launched before WhatsApp to support his claims, including channels, editable messages, disappearing chats, advanced stickers, and interactive polls. He further emphasized that the list was only partial and argued that many Telegram innovations remain unavailable on WhatsApp.

Durov urged contestants in the competition to create short videos that demonstrate Telegram’s technological lead and privacy-first approach.

He added that the submissions should show how Telegram’s features were original and arrived years before WhatsApp implemented similar tools. He stated:

“The goal is simple: create a viral video showing how Telegram has always been years ahead of its cheap copycat — WhatsApp.”

Over the years, Telegram has grown rapidly, especially within the crypto community, thanks to its open platform and commitment to security.

Notably, Durov has consistently reiterated Telegram’s refusal to compromise encryption standards, even stating that the company would rather exit markets than introduce surveillance backdoors.

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