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Woman agrees to Instagram ad offering $120,000 to become a surrogate before making shocking discovery about who she was carrying the baby for
A woman who agreed to become a surrogate after seeing a $120,000 ad on Instagram later found out who the baby she was carrying was reportedly really for.
The woman, who has been identified only as "Judy", said she had been considering surrogacy as a way to "build a better life" for herself and her seven-year-old daughter.
Judy signed an agreement with Patriot Conceptions, a California-based, veteran-founded surrogacy and egg donation agency, in hopes that the money would allow her to move into a home of her own, Metro reported.
But while she was pregnant, she learned through reporters that the circumstances surrounding the father were not what she had been told.
Judy says she was told the parent was a single father
The woman said she was told she was carrying a child for a "single father who wanted to grow his family".
But she later discovered that the dad was reportedly Xu Bo, the 48-year-old Chinese gaming billionaire behind the online gaming company Duoyi.
Reports have claimed Xu has fathered more than 100 US-born children through surrogacy agencies and wants to create a family dynasty.
Judy said she believed the agency should have disclosed more information before she agreed to the arrangement.
"The agency should've been very transparent from before getting matched… about who it is that you’re having a baby for and what the family is," she told CBS News.
She also shared that she was informed that around two dozen other women were carrying babies for the billionaire at the same time.
"I can't be exact, but I know it was a large number, and I just kind of sat with that information thinking, 'You know, that’s a lot,'" she said. "That’s a lot of kids at one time."
Judy ultimately decided to continue with the pregnancy after speaking with friends and family.
Following her experience, The California Post contacted Patriot Conceptions for its response.
The agency said Xu had presented himself as a single father and stressed that it had "zero affiliations" with another case involving a different agency, in which another woman was also allegedly carrying a child for the billionaire.
"Conflating our agency with those unrelated arrangements is materially misleading," Patriot Conceptions said.
The company also announced new measures to give future surrogates more information and safeguards before agreeing to an arrangement.
"A surrogate should never have to become an investigator to understand the arrangement she is entering. In response to these industry-wide challenges, Patriot Conceptions is introducing a standardized pre-match disclosure framework -'Before You Accept' - and establishing an independent fund to guarantee surrogates access to independent legal and psychological counsel if material client facts change," they said.
Investigation raises questions over the surrogacy industry
Judy’s story comes amid a wider CBS News investigation into alleged abuse within the US surrogacy industry.
Whistleblowers told the outlet that "women can enter into agency contracts unaware they may carry children simultaneously with other surrogates for the same intended parents, or carry for foreign nationals who may never enter the country."
The investigation has also highlighted the experience of another woman, identified under the pseudonym Andrea.
Andrea reportedly found out that she would have to hand over the baby she had carried through surrogacy to a "completely different couple" from the people she had initially met.
There is currently no official tally documenting the total number of surrogacy births in the United States.
However, estimates suggest there may be as many as 10,000 each year.
Xu Bo has reportedly fathered more than 100 US-born children
Xu reportedly refers to himself as "China’s first father".
According to the Wall Street Journal, the billionaire aims to produce "50 high-quality sons," as part of an effort to keep his business in the "family".
The publication also reported that Xu has posted on his own social media about having fathered more than 100 babies through surrogacy.
He has also reportedly said he hopes that some of his US-born children could eventually marry Elon Musk's children.
Xu is not the only wealthy businessman to have fathered a large number of children, as Telegram founder Pavel Durov has helped conceive at least 100 children across 12 countries.
As of late 2025, the entrepreneur, who was worth $12.1 billion, had six "official" children with three different partners.
Durov has also donated to a sperm clinic for more than 15 years, with the clinic telling him that his donations had resulted in more than 100 pregnancies.
The Telegram founder has previously said that all of his children will be treated equally when it comes to his estate.
"I wrote my will very recently," he 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."