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Chinese billionaire who has fathered more than 100 children hopes to have dozens of U.S.-born boys to one day take over his business

Emma Burleigh
By
Emma Burleigh
Emma Burleigh
Reporter, Success
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Emma Burleigh
By
Emma Burleigh
Emma Burleigh
Reporter, Success
Down Arrow Button Icon
March 5, 2026, 8:28 AM ET
Baby in hospital
Xu Bo, the founder of one of China’s largest mobile gaming companies, is looking to have “50 high-quality sons” in the U.S. to take over his billion-dollar empire.Jacek_Sopotnicki / Getty Images

Billionaires like Telegram founder Pavel Durov and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have fathered legions of children who are slated to inherit their empires. An ultra-wealthy Chinese businessman is doing the same in the U.S., in hopes of producing around 20 U.S.-born children to inherit his video game fortune. 

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Xu Bo is the founder and chairman of Guangzhou Duoyi Network: one of China’s largest mobile gaming companies. Despite the Gen X entrepreneur growing his company in Guangzhou, he’s not looking to pass down his $1.1 billion fortune to a child born in his home country. A 2025 Wall Street Journal investigation into Xu’s surrogacy history in the U.S. found the Chinese billionaire was seeking parental rights to at least four unborn children, and had previously fathered and was actively fathering at least eight more surrogacy kids. There could be dozens more.

The billionaire’s video game company had also reportedly stated Xu has more than 100 children born through surrogates based in the U.S., according to the WSJ reporting last year. He was allegedly seeking “50 high-quality sons,” according to accounts linked to Xu on Chinese microblogging website Weibo, and said that “having more children can solve all problems.” During a 2023 court hearing, Xu also said he hoped to have around 20 U.S.-born children to one day take over his business, according to WSJ.

He also fantasized about his American kids marrying Musk’s children in the future. In late 2025, Xu’s ex-girlfriend also alleged that he had 300 children living around the world—a claim his company denied. 

Xu’s Duoyi Network made a statement against the Journal, stating the publication had “deliberately confused the facts and fabricated false information,” and that only 12 of the alleged 100-plus children were born in the U.S.

Another billionaire fathering 100+ heirs: Telegram founder Pavel Durvo 

Xu is among a growing number of ultra-rich men parenting dozens of children to shepherd their companies and expand their legacies. And just like Xu, the video game billionaire, Telegram founder Durov has helped conceive at least 100 babies across 12 countries. 

As of late 2025, the entrepreneur worth $12.1 billion had six “official” children with three different partners. In addition to this parentage, Durov has also been donating to a sperm clinic for more than 15 years, which told him has led to more than 100 pregnancies. 

“I wrote my will very recently,” Durov told French publication Le Point in an interview last year. “I make no difference between my children: There are those who were conceived naturally and those who come from my sperm donations. They are all my children and will all have the same rights! I don’t want them to tear each other apart after my death.”

A version of this story was published on Fortune.com on December 25, 2025.

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About the Author
Emma Burleigh
By Emma BurleighReporter, Success

Emma Burleigh is a reporter at Fortune, covering success, careers, entrepreneurship, and personal finance. Before joining the Success desk, she co-authored Fortune’s CHRO Daily newsletter, extensively covering the workplace and the future of jobs. Emma has also written for publications including the Observer and The China Project, publishing long-form stories on culture, entertainment, and geopolitics. She has a joint-master’s degree from New York University in Global Journalism and East Asian Studies.

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