Ilya Ivanovich Ivanov (1870–1932) was a Russian and Soviet biologist and veterinarian who specialized in the field of artificial insemination and interspecific hybridization. Considered a pioneer in his field, he perfected artificial insemination techniques for horse breeding, achieving significant results that earned him a considerable international scientific reputation. His best-known and most controversial work, however, was the attempt to create a human-chimpanzee hybrid. Beginning in the 1920s, with the support of Soviet institutions, he conducted a series of experiments, first at the Pasteur Institute in Paris and then at a research station in French Guinea, without ever achieving his goal. His career came to an abrupt end in 1930 when he was arrested during the Stalinist purges and sentenced to exile in Kazakhstan, where he died shortly thereafter. Despite the failure of his most ambitious projects, Ivanov is remembered today for both his pioneering contributions to zootechnics and the profound ethical implications raised by his hybridization research.