US Charges OpenAI Engineer Over Alleged Office Recording Device

Federal prosecutors charged OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan with allegedly placing a recording device in an executive conference room at the company’s San Francisco office, raising security concerns at a leading artificial-intelligence firm.

The charge alleges that Alfozan, a 35-year-old Saudi national, used or attempted to use an electronic device to intercept oral communications. The first device was found Sept. 30 concealed in toilet paper and connected to a USB port behind a television.

A second device was allegedly discovered Oct. 5 inside an unattended bag containing Alfozan’s wallet and identification. Alfozan was arrested Oct. 9 and appeared in federal court Tuesday, Oct. 13.

OpenAI said it terminated Alfozan and referred the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The company said it found no indication that model weights, source code or customer data had been improperly accessed or removed.

The case involves alleged surveillance inside a private company office where proprietary research and strategic business plans were discussed. If convicted, Alfozan faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.