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Dmitry Volkov (entrepreneur)

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(Redirected from Dmitry Borisovich Volkov)

Dmitry Volkov
Born
Dmitry Borisovich Volkov

(1976-07-09) 9 July 1976 (age 50)
Moscow, Soviet Union
CitizenshipMalta
Occupationsentrepreneur, investor, philosopher, member of modern art community

Dmitriy Borisovich Volkov (Russian: Дмитрий Борисович Волков; born 9 July 1976) is a Russian entrepreneur and philosopher.[1] He co-founded Social Discovery Group (SDGroup), an international internet holding company headquartered in Malta, and is co-owner of Dating Group.[2][3][4] He is also the co-founder of the non-profit cultural association, the International Center for Consciousness Studies (ICCS).[5][relevant?]

In 2016, Volkov founded the SDG Arts and Science Foundation.[6]

He holds a PhD in philosophy[7] and co-founded the Moscow Center for Consciousness Studies (MCCS) at the Philosophy Department of Moscow State University.[8][non-primary source needed][9]

Business

[edit]

In 1998, Volkov founded IT-online, a company specializing in developing and promoting online projects.[10]

In 2014, SDGroup, an internet holding company, was founded along with foreign partners. It consolidated Volkov's assets after the sale of IT-Online. The headquarters of SDGroup is located in Malta.[9][11]

Since 2013 and through SDGroup Volkov invested about $20 million in Bitfury, a blockchain software and hardware developer.[12]

In April 2018, Dmitriy Volkov and Yuriy Gurskiy joined the Managing Board of the Gagarin Capital venture fund owned by Nikolay Davidov and Mikhail Taver. In 2019, Dmitriy sold a part of his intellectual property to the management company for $215 million and acquired a share in Dating Group, a joint venture. Dating Group is one of the biggest companies in the industry, with 73 million registered users and an annual revenue of $200 million.[13][14][15] The Social Discovery Group includes[relevant?] Dating.com, AnastasiaDate, ArabianDate, AsianDate, AmoLatina and DateMyAge.[16][17][18][19][20][21] In 2021, Dating Group acquired Once, the Swiss dating app.[22]

Both the dating.com group and Dmitry Volkov appear in the ICIJ offshore leaks database.[23][24]

The holding company also owns a real estate fund, Real Estate Discovery Ventures (REDV). As of 2019, the estimated fund value is $198 million. The fund mainly focuses on the US shopping malls.[25][26]

Since 2001, Dmitriy Volkov has been a member of the Project Management Institute community and since 2006, a member of the Usability Professional Association. Volkov completed Executive Education programs at Harvard Business School and the University of California, Berkeley.[27] He is a partner of several international funds, for example, Blockchain Capital and Mangrove Capital Partners.[28][29][non-primary source needed]

In February 2022, Dmitry Volkov ceased any operations in Russia and Belarus and discontinued registering new users from either country to the Social Discovery Group's portfolio of platforms.[30]

2026 ICIJ investigation

[edit]

In July 2026, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) published an investigation into the business practices of dating platforms associated with Volkov's Social Discovery Group (SDG). The investigation described Volkov as the primary owner of a network of more than 60 dating brands operated through companies including SDG, Social Discovery Ventures, SOL Networks and SOL Holdings. According to ICIJ, SOL Networks was the group's central operating company and operated platforms including Dating.com and AmoLatina during parts of the period examined.[31]

The investigation was based on interviews with users, models and other participants, as well as reviews of payment records, correspondence, job advertisements, social-media material and corporate records. ICIJ reported that some paying users spent thousands or tens of thousands of dollars communicating with profiles whose operators repeatedly avoided live video calls or meetings. Some users later identified the people shown in the profiles as models, influencers or other public figures using different names. ICIJ also reported testimony from models who said that intermediaries had paid them to provide photographs and videos, while other people conducted the written conversations associated with their profiles.[31]

SDG denied employing or paying models or chat operators and said that every profile was required to represent the person personally operating the account. It said that licensed-likeness profiles, automated communication, bots and third-party-operated accounts were prohibited. The company stated that it used identity verification, automated monitoring and account enforcement measures, and that affiliates found violating its rules could be fined or terminated. SDG also said that it had removed more than 30,000 accounts suspected of fraudulent activity during 2025.[31]

The ICIJ report cited an earlier investigation by the Russian-language publication Verstka into Web Flex, a company operating in Tbilisi, Georgia. Former workers alleged that Web Flex staff communicated with paying users through profiles on Dating.com and AnastasiaDate. SDG denied that Web Flex's managers had been employees of the group. It subsequently told ICIJ that it had retained an outside investigator and had suspended payments to an affiliate partner while the matter was reviewed.[31]

Following questions from ICIJ, the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority said that it was conducting a detailed assessment of SOL Networks, AmoLatina and related activities to determine whether a formal investigation was warranted. The authority had not announced a finding of wrongdoing at the time of publication.[31]

Allegations regarding Dating.com and AnastasiaDate operations

[edit]

In May 2026, the independent Russian outlet Verstka published an investigation linking Volkov, as a co-founder of Social Discovery Group, to the operation of Dating.com and AnastasiaDate, which it described as systematically deceiving paying users.[32][better source needed] Drawing on interviews with current and former employees of a Tbilisi-based contractor, Web Flex, the report stated that conversations users believed to be with the people shown in profiles were instead produced by shift-working operators.[32][better source needed]

Response and denials

[edit]

In a comment to Verstka, Volkov stated that he had been one of the founders of SDG "many years ago" and remained an investor in the dating companies DilMil and CupidMedia, but said he had no role in their operational management and that his focus was investing; he denied that the individuals identified as operating Web Flex had ever worked under him.[32][better source needed] Social Discovery Group, responding through a crisis consultant, denied hiring chat operators or working with contractors such as Web Flex, stated that every profile must be created and managed by the real person it represents, and said the company had removed more than 30,000 accounts for fraudulent or scam-related activity in 2025.[32][better source needed] The report also noted a 2024 lawsuit filed in New York by a user, Michelle Grimmett, against Dating.com's financial operator, alleging violations of anti-racketeering law and deceptive practices; the case was referred to arbitration with no ruling issued, and Volkov was not named in the court documents.[32][better source needed]

Art activity

[edit]

In the spring of 2015, Volkov assisted in publishing a series of art books "Contemporary Art" dedicated to the modern Russian artists, and their role in the context of the development of Russian and global culture. He performed and held several art events together with Oleg Kulik, a modern artist and a performer, including "Strict Proof of an External World" in the spring of 2015. In the summer of 2015, he organized an expedition of Social Discovery Group employees to Burning Man, where he presented the result of his latest project with Oleg Kulik – the installation "Oraculetang".[33][34][35][36][37]

In September 2015 Volkov arranged a pop-up exhibition of modern technological art "Superconduction: challenge of art & technology" in Riga.[38]

From 1 January 2016 to 2017, he was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Tretyakov Gallery Support Fund. On 15 April 2016, a new exhibition, "Modern Art: 1960–2000. Restart,” was launched in Tretyakov Gallery with his contribution.[39]

In 2016–2017, the fund partnered with the grant program of Garage Museum of Contemporary Art that awards grants to young artists of "Art and technology", and Dmitriy became the museum patron till 2021.[40]

In September 2016, during the exhibition "Collection! Modern Art in the USSR and Russia in 1950–2000" he presented the Parisian Centre Pompidou with a piece by Sergey Bugaev-Afrika.[41][42][43][44]

In 2017, Business Insider named "Aliens? — Yes!", the collaboration of Dmitriy Volkov and the artist Andrey Bartenev, one of the best scenes of the Burning Man festival in Nevada, USA.[45][46]

In May 2019, Dmitriy Volkov and media artists Natalia Altufova and Yaroslav Kravtsov presented a multimedia pop-up project, Faced2Faced, as part of the special program at the 58th Venice Biennale.[47][48]

In 2018, Volkov's fund SDG Arts & Science Foundation partnered with the Educational Center of the Moscow Museum of Modern Art. On 28 November 2019, the Moscow Museum of Modern Art launched the exhibition "This Is Not a Book. Collection of Dmitriy Volkov. The story of a man, his art and library." This exhibition became a part of the museum's educational program.[49][50]

Academic activity

[edit]

Academic career

[edit]

In 1998, he graduated from the History Department of Moscow State University (MSU) and later took the postgraduate programme in International relations in IMEMO.[9] In 2003, he enrolled at the Philosophy Department of MSU, and later took a graduate program in philosophy. In 2008, he defended PhD thesis with "D. Dennett's theory of consciousness" as the subject.[51] In 2009, he became one of the founders of MCCS at the Philosophy Department of Moscow State University. The Center supports and facilitates studies in the fields of philosophy of mind, personal identity, free will and moral responsibility.[52][9] In 2012, he published the book "Boston zombie: D.Dennett and his theory of consciousness."[53][relevant?] In 2014, he became a member of the American Philosophical Association.[54] The international scientific conference "Problems of Consciousness and Free Will in Analytical Philosophy" was held during the expedition.[9][55] In 2017, Dmitriy Volkov defended his Dr. Habil. thesis on "Problems of free will and moral responsibility in analytic philosophy in late XX – early XXI century".[56] In February 2019, Volkov published his second book, "Free Will: Illusion or Opportunity".[relevant?]

In August 2023 he organised the Summer Philosophy School "Metaphysics of Uploading" in Palermo, Italy.[57]

Co-founder of the non-profit cultural association ICCS, which goal is to promote international philosophical and interdisciplinary research into the mind and consciousness.[5][relevant?]

Research and main ideas

[edit]

In his book Boston Zombie: D. Dennett and his Theory of Consciousness, Dmitriy Volkov criticized the arguments of Dennett, Searle and Vasiliev on intentionality and mental causation. He analyzed the Multiple Drafts Model proposed by Dennett and his critique of the "Cartesian theater" and the project of disqualifying qualia. Volkov provided counterarguments against Dennett's thought experiments. The book also addresses the concept of the Self as the center of narrative gravity. According to Sergey Merzlyakov, a scholar of the Scientific Research Lab of the MSU Economics Department, Volkov's book is the most complete and accurate research of Dennett's theory of consciousness.[58]

Major works

[edit]
  • Free will in R. Kane's libertarianism D. B. Volkov. Moscow University Bulletin. Series 7: Philosophy. 2015. no. 6. P. 32-51.
  • About organizing the Greenland conference "Problems of consciousness and free will in analytical philosophy" D. B. Volkov, D. Dennett. Moscow University Bulletin. Series 7: Philosophy. 2015. no. 6. P. 3-7.
  • Does causal trajectory argument of V. V. Vasiliev disprove local supervenience of mental nature over physical nature? D. B. Volkov. Epistemology and Philosophy of Science. 2015. V. 2. P. 166—182. 2
  • What do manipulations with D. Pereboom's "Manipulation argument" prove? D. B. Volkov. Philosophy and Culture. 2015. No. 6. P. 933—942. 0
  • Boston zombie. D. Dennett and his theory of consciousness. D. B. Volkov. Moscow, 2011. Ser. Philosophy of consciousness
  • "D. Dennett's theory of consciousness". D. B. Volkov. Thesis for a Candidate Degree in Philosophical Sciences / Moscow State University. Moscow 2008
  • Disputes on consciousness and analytical philosophy. D. B. Volkov. Epistemology and Philosophy of Science. 2007. V. 13. No. 3. P. 176—181.
  • Inconsistency of manipulation arguments and disappearing agent for the problem of free will and moral responsibility. D. B. Volkov. Problems of Philosophy 2017. No. 6. P. 29-38.
  • What do Russian philosophers think about? Internet survey results. D. B. Volkov. Moscow University Bulletin. Series 7: Philosophy. 2017. no. 6. P. 84-116.
  • Solution of the mental causality in biological naturalism of J. Searle. D. B. Volkov. Philosophical thought. 2017. No. 2. P. 1-12.
  • Free will: new turns of old discussion D. B. Volkov. Philosophy Journal. 2017. V. 10. No. 1. P. 58-77.
  • "Thesis on Consciousness" and moral responsibility in researches of Neil Levy. D. B. Volkov. Logos. 2016. V. 26. No. 5. P. 213—226.
  • Exclusion argument of J. Kim and problem of mental causality. D. B. Volkov. Moscow University Bulletin. Series 7: Philosophy. 2016. no. 6. P. 15-32.
  • Narrative approach as the solution to the problem of personal identity. D. B. Volkov. St. Petersburg State University Bulletin. 2016. V. 17. No. 4. P. 21-32.
  • Problem of mental causality: Overview of the latest researches. D. B. Volkov. Philosophy and Culture. 2016. No. 6. P. 673 −682.
  • Problem of free will. Overview of the key researches of the late XX – early XXI century in analytical philosophy. D. B. Volkov. Philosophy Journal. M.: The RAS Institute of Philosophy. 2016. V. 9. No. 3. P. 175—189.
  • Review of a 2014 D. Pereboom's book "Free will". D. B. Volkov. Tomsk University Bulletin. Philosophy. Sociology. Politology. 2016. No. 4. P. 404 −409.
  • Are psychopaths morally responsible persons? D. B. Volkov. Tomsk University Bulletin. Philosophy. Sociology. Politology. 2016. No. 2(34). P. 212 −222.
  • Chinese room. Date compote. 2015. No. 8.
  • Where am I? Incredible figures of D. Dennett. D. B. Volkov. Philosophy of consciousness. Analytical tradition. 3rd Gryaznov's readings. Materials of the *International Scientific Conference. 2009.
  • Strong version of artificial intelligence. D. B. Volkov. Philosophy of consciousness: classics and modernity: 2nd Gryaznov's readings. 2007.
  • Free will: Illusion or opportunity. Dmitriy Volkov. Moscow 2018.
  • The Conscious Mind: In search of a Fundamental Theory. Translation from English / published with participation of Moscow consciousness research center. Moscow, 2013. Ser. Philosophy of consciousness (editor)

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ "Как холдинг SDVentures отбирает проекты". Rusbase. 14 July 2016.
  2. ↑ "Dmitry Volkov and the dating business".
  3. ↑ В списке 200 богатейших бизнесменов России появился новый участник, Forbes
  4. ↑ Social Discovery Group co-founder Dmitry Volkov at Campden Global Owners and Family Office Congress 2023, crunchdubai.com
  5. 1 2 ICCS, hardproblem.it
  6. ↑ "SDVentures вложил около $1 млн в разработчика гарнитуры для улучшения памяти Halo NeuroScience – Firrma. Данные для стартапа". Archived from the original on 13 February 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "Problems of free will and moral responsibility in analytic philosophy in late XX – early XXI century".
  8. ↑ Проблема свободы воли и моральной ответственности в аналитической философии конца XX — начала XXI вв., диссертация Дмитрия Волкова
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 В поисках чистого разума: зачем российский бизнесмен собрал философскую экспедицию, Forbes
  10. ↑ "Создатель сервиса знакомств Dating.com вошел в список богатейших россиян по версии Forbes".
  11. ↑ "The headquarters of SDGroup".
  12. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков: история успеха". dknews.kz (in Russian). 10 March 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  13. ↑ Торбицкий, Сергей (12 April 2018). "Юрий Гурский и Дмитрий Волков присоединились к управлению венчурным фондом Gagarin Capital".
  14. ↑ "Юрий Гурский и Дмитрий Волков присоединились к Gagarin Capital". www.kommersant.ru. 12 April 2018.
  15. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков и бизнес в сфере дейтинга".
  16. ↑ https://www.datinggrp.com/
  17. ↑ "Social Discovery Group launches venture studio to build the future of virtual intimacy".
  18. ↑ "Internet Dating Newswire".
  19. ↑ "Home". anastasia-website.com.
  20. ↑ Dating.com Group Launches $50 Million Corporate VC Fund
  21. ↑ "Dmitry Volkov and the dating business".
  22. ↑ "Dating Group объявила о покупке сервиса для "осознанных" знакомств за $18 млн". Forbes. 19 January 2021.
  23. ↑ DATING.COM GROUP LIMITED
  24. ↑ https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/nodes/12141417
  25. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков". redv.fund. Archived from the original on 21 February 2020. Retrieved 13 November 2020.
  26. ↑ "Real Estate Discovery Ventures | Gideon Group". The Real Deal New York. 30 March 2018.
  27. ↑ "Dmitry Volkov – Forbes". councils.forbes.com.
  28. ↑ "Dmitry Volkov on investing".
  29. ↑ "URSS.ru – Купить книгу: Волков Д.Б. / Бостонский зомби: Д.Деннет и его теория сознания / 2019 г. / Volkov D.B. / ISBN 978-5-9710-5573-0". urss.ru.
  30. ↑ "My NFT Wars is Flipping the Script on Blockchain Gaming". thecoinrepublic.com. 23 April 2023.
  31. 1 2 3 4 5 Shiel, Fergus (23 July 2026). "Inside the Matrix: How models, influencers and engagement quotas power the Social Discovery Group's dating machine and global profits". International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved 24 July 2026.
  32. 1 2 3 4 5 Gerasimenko, Olesya; Smurov, Ivan; Zhadaev, Ivan (18 May 2026). «Всем без разницы, потому что за это деньги платят»: как мошенники, вооружившись нейросетями, зарабатывают на желающих влюбиться [Nobody cares, because they pay for it: how scammers armed with neural networks profit from people looking for love]. Verstka (in Russian). Retrieved 26 June 2026.
  33. ↑ "В столице открылся фестиваль по спасению музыкальных инструментов". www.mk.ru. 27 September 2015.
  34. ↑ Москвы, Новости из (17 September 2016). "Фестиваль трансцендентных фортепиано". 1artchannel.
  35. ↑ Герасименко, Павел (21 March 2015). "Олег Кулик и Дмитрий Волков доказали существование внешнего мира". The Art Newspaper Russia.
  36. ↑ Антонова, Анна. "Дискуссия "Искусство на заказ" в Московском музее современного искусства". Журнал OK!.
  37. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков: "Философия делает этот мир уютнее"". GQ Россия. 10 April 2016.
  38. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков: "В пустыне даже настоящие мужчины ломаются"". golbis.com. 8 August 2016. Archived from the original on 21 February 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  39. ↑ "Конструктор контркультуры". Коммерсантъ. 19 April 2016 – via Kommersant.
  40. ↑ "Грантовая программа "Искусство и технологии" 2016/2017". Garage.
  41. ↑ Russia, The Art Newspaper (16 September 2016). "Российское искусство в Центре Помпиду: полный список дарителей и художников выставки "КОЛЛЕКЦИЯ!"". The Art Newspaper Russia.
  42. ↑ "Миллионер под видом "интеллигентного бомжа" раздарил более 12 млн рублей". newizv.ru.
  43. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков рассчитывает создать попечительский фонд нижегородского "Арсенала" в мае 2017 года". www.niann.ru.
  44. ↑ "ГЦСИ – Нижний Новгород". NCCA.
  45. ↑ Garfield, Leanna (29 August 2017). "The most wild and incredible art at Burning Man 2017". Business Insider.
  46. ↑ "Современное искусство стало модным". Коммерсантъ. 18 May 2018 – via Kommersant.
  47. ↑ "Российские разработчики показали цифровых двойников на Венецианском биеннале". Известия. 12 May 2019.
  48. ↑ "Где и как встретиться со своим цифровым двойником". РБК Стиль.
  49. ↑ ""Интересно поменять заказчика и художника местами"". Коммерсантъ. 18 November 2019 – via Kommersant.
  50. ↑ ""THIS IS NOT A BOOK: КОЛЛЕКЦИЯ ДМИТРИЯ ВОЛКОВА. ИСТОРИЯ О ЧЕЛОВЕКЕ, ЕГО ИСКУССТВЕ И БИБЛИОТЕКЕ"". www.mmoma.ru.
  51. ↑ Волков, Дмитрий Борисович (20 October 2008). Теория сознания Д. Деннета (Thesis) – via www.dissercat.com.
  52. ↑ "free will and moral responsibility".
  53. ↑ Volkov, Dmitry. Монография Бостонский Зомби: теория сознания Д. Деннета – via www.academia.edu.
  54. ↑ "Дмитрий Волков". Forbes.ru. 13 December 2018.
  55. ↑ Борисович, Волков Дмитрий; Дениел, Деннет (20 October 2015). "Об организации конференции в Гренландии "Проблемы сознания и свободы воли в аналитической философии"". Вестник Московского университета. Серия 7. Философия (6): 3–7 – via cyberleninka.ru.
  56. ↑ Волков, Дмитрий Борисович (21 November 2017). Проблема свободы воли и моральной ответственности в аналитической философии конца XX – начала XXI вв (Thesis) – via www.dissercat.com.
  57. ↑ ""Metaphysics of Uploading": filosofi di fama mondiale discutono sul futuro della mente umana".
  58. ↑ "Новые книги по философии сознания на русском языке". cyberleninka.ru.
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