Saudi ex-OpenAI worker accused in recording-device case with alleged Saudi support

US prosecutors have accused a former OpenAI worker of planting a hidden recording device in one of the company's meeting rooms and say he had considerable support from the Saudi government. In a court filing in California, they alleged that Abdulrahman Alfozan was in frequent communication with a member of the Saudi royal family and that a Saudi military official paid for travel for his wife and son after his arrest. Prosecutors argued that the 35-year-old engineer should be detained before trial because he posed a flight risk.

The filing says OpenAI discovered the device on 30 September in a conference room, where it had been plugged into the back of a television and covered with toilet paper. The company then placed a camera in the room, and on 5 October Alfozan was filmed entering and appearing to look behind the television where the recorder had been inserted. He was arrested by the FBI on 9 October and his contract with OpenAI was terminated.

Prosecutors said the alleged conduct could threaten US national security because executives from the technology company met government officials in the room during the period when the device is believed to have been installed. They also said Alfozan had planned to leave the United States on a one-way trip from San Francisco to Riyadh with his wife and son three days after his arrest. According to the filing, his wife told FBI agents that her US visa was expiring and that she and her son were permanently moving back to Saudi Arabia, while her husband intended to do the same.

The case comes amid wider concern in the United States about the security of sensitive information held by major artificial intelligence companies. OpenAI has become a prominent player in the sector, and meetings involving its executives can draw government attention because of the strategic importance of AI development. The allegations in the filing also raise questions about possible foreign-state links in a case that prosecutors have framed as more than a workplace security breach.

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Alfozan had worked at OpenAI for around a year before the alleged attempt to plant the recorder. The court filing says his wife and son flew from San Francisco to Doha on 10 October, using a one-way business-class ticket booked and paid for by a Saudi military official. The Saudi government did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and the allegations have not yet been tested in court.

Alfozan is due to appear in federal court in San Francisco later on Monday. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. It remains unclear how the court will rule on the detention request, and whether prosecutors will provide further evidence about the alleged Saudi links or the purpose of the recording device.

The case is likely to be watched closely because it combines national security concerns, corporate espionage allegations and questions about foreign support for a defendant facing federal charges.

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