FBI arrest Saudi OpenAI employee for allegedly planting recording device in office
The ex-OpenAI employee allegedly wrapped a USB device in toilet paper and inserted it into a television located in an "executive conference room".
The FBI arrested Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old Saudi national and former OpenAI employee, on October 9 for allegedly planting a hidden recording device in the executive conference room of the company's San Francisco office. Alfozan, who had joined OpenAI as an engineer in July 2025, appeared in a US court on Tuesday and faces charges of using or attempting to use an electronic device to intercept oral communications.
According to prosecutors, the device, wrapped in toilet paper and inserted into a USB port on a TV, was discovered by OpenAI after the employee was fired. CCTV footage showed Alfozan near the conference room on multiple occasions before the device was found. The Justice Department noted that discussions in the conference room frequently involved sensitive information about OpenAI's technical, commercial, and strategic matters.
OpenAI stated that they alerted the FBI following the discovery of the device and that they have not found any evidence of Alfozan improperly accessing or exfiltrating model weights, source code, or customer data. If convicted, Alfozan could face a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.
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