A Los Angeles family court judge made a stunning discovery in 2023 that pulled back the curtain on a secretive practice among Chinese billionaires: using American surrogates to father massive numbers of U.S.-born children.
Judge Amy Pellman’s clerks noticed something unusual while reviewing routine surrogacy petitions.
The same Chinese billionaire’s name appeared repeatedly in applications seeking parental rights to unborn children carried by American surrogates.
Xu Bo, a wealthy Chinese videogame developer, was attempting to gain legal custody of at least four unborn children.
Court research revealed he had already fathered or was in the process of fathering at least eight more children through the same method.
During a confidential hearing in summer 2023, Xu appeared via video from China, speaking through an interpreter.
He told Judge Pellman he aimed to have approximately 20 U.S.-born children through surrogacy, specifically requesting boys because he considered them superior to girls.
These children would eventually take over his business empire.
Several of his children were already living in Irvine, California, cared for by nannies while awaiting paperwork to travel to China.
Xu admitted he had not yet met them due to work commitments.
Judge Pellman denied his parentage request, a rare rebuke in a process that typically receives swift approval.
The decision left the children in legal limbo.
The case exposed a little-known trend in the largely unregulated U.S. surrogacy industry.
Chinese elites and billionaires are bypassing China’s domestic surrogacy ban by quietly commissioning large numbers of American-born babies, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Some Chinese parents cite Elon Musk’s 14 known children as inspiration.
They pay millions in surrogacy fees to American women to build extraordinarily large families.
Xu calls himself “China’s first father” and is known in China for criticizing feminism.
His company’s social media accounts claim he has more than 100 children born through U.S. surrogacy.
Another wealthy Chinese executive, Wang Huiwu, hired U.S. models and others as egg donors to father 10 girls. According to people close to his education company, he planned to marry them off to powerful men.
Other Chinese clients include high-powered executives lacking time to bear children, older parents, and same-sex couples.
All possess the wealth to circumvent Chinese restrictions while maintaining privacy to manage potential logistical and legal issues at home. Some have political connections to avoid censure.
The market has become so sophisticated that Chinese parents sometimes have U.S.-born children without ever visiting America.
A thriving industry of American surrogacy agencies, law firms, clinics, delivery services and nanny agencies has emerged to meet this demand.
Parents can ship genetic material abroad and receive a baby for up to $200,000 per child.
The growing Asian market for international fertility services has attracted American investors, including Peter Thiel. His family office has backed IVF clinic chains across Southeast Asia and recently opened a Los Angeles branch.
Most U.S. states do not prohibit international parents from working with American surrogates.
Chinese law does not strictly ban citizens from pursuing overseas surrogacy, but officials have criticized the practice.
Stories of Chinese celebrities or government officials using overseas surrogates have sparked public scandal in China, where many view surrogacy as ethically questionable and exploitative.
Babies born in the U.S. automatically become American citizens under the 14th Amendment.
This constitutional guarantee for children of foreign nationals has long been politically contentious.
In 2020, the State Department tightened visa rules for women suspected of birth tourism.
This January, Donald Trump issued an executive order denying citizenship to children born in the U.S. unless at least one parent was a citizen or permanent legal resident.
The Supreme Court is reviewing the order.
