Ex-OpenAI worker accused of bugging conference room planned to fly to Saudi Arabia, prosecutors say

A former OpenAI engineer named Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, is accused of secretly installing a recording device in a conference room at the company to gather confidential information. According to federal prosecutors, Alfozan had been preparing to leave the United States for Saudi Arabia for "mere days" before his arrest. He had been fired from his position at OpenAI and his family had already departed for Saudi Arabia on a one-way ticket booked by a Saudi military official.

The defense argues that Alfozan, a Saudi national with ties to the Saudi royal family, planned to use the recordings for personal gain. However, he had expressed his intention to return to the Bay Area if his stock with OpenAI was vested. If convicted, Alfozan faces up to five years in prison.