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Ex-OpenAI Engineer Accused of Planting Bug Had Saudi Support, Prosecutors Say
Confirmed
In Short: Prosecutors claim that Alfozan's interactions with the royal family included discussions about his plans to leave OpenAI and pursue opportunities in Saudi Arabia.
According to the filing, Alfozan was in frequent communication with an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family and a Saudi military official paid for a one-way plane ticket for his wife and son to return to Saudi Arabia after his arrest.
Alfozan reportedly responded with '100' to a message from the royal family, indicating his agreement to their requests.
The court filing also revealed that Alfozan had booked a one-way flight to Saudi Arabia with his family before his arrest, which occurred on October 9.
Alfozan, who was arrested after OpenAI terminated his contract, allegedly installed a sophisticated listening device in an executive conference room to record sensitive meetings involving senior OpenAI personnel and executives.
The device was reportedly concealed in toilet paper and inserted into a USB port on the back of a television.
Alfozan's lawyer stated that the planned trip to Saudi Arabia was for 'family and immigration reasons' and not related to his arrest.
Prosecutors argue that Alfozan's connections and support from Saudi Arabia pose a risk of flight and that he should be detained pending trial.
What's confirmed
- Federal prosecutors allege that the defendant, Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, was in frequent communication with an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family and that a Saudi military official paid for a one-way plane ticket for Alfozan’s wife and young son to return to Saudi Arabia after his arrest, according to the court document, made public late on Sunday.
- Following the arrest, the document claims the defendant's wife told FBI agents who interviewed her that "her US visa was expiring" and so she and her son were "permanently moving back to Saudi Arabia", and her husband intended to do the same.
- Alfozan responded "100," which prosecutors interpreted as agreement. The royal repeatedly tried to recruit Alfozan for an artificial intelligence initiative in Saudi Arabia and asked when he planned to leave OpenAI. Alfozan said he would not leave until his stock vested, according to prosecutors. He was also allegedly pursuing other opportunities in Saudi Arabia, including applying to the Mohammed bin Salman Foundation's "2030 Leaders" program.
- “The defendant went to significant lengths to create customized, encrypted recording devices to secretly record highly sensitive meetings involving senior OpenAI personnel and executives, high-level business counterparts, and government officials, all while communicating with individuals of significance in Saudi Arabia and pursuing opportunities in — and making plans to travel to — Saudi Arabia,” prosecutors wrote in a detention memo.
- Report us Related Topics OpenAI Saudi Arabia A former OpenAI engineer accused of secretly planting a recording device inside the company's San Francisco headquarters maintained frequent contact with a member of the Saudi royal family and appears to have received considerable support from the Saudi government, according to a court filing reported by CNBC on Monday.
- Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press Barbara Ortutay, Associated Press Philip Marcelo, Associated Press Philip Marcelo, Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A former OpenAI engineer charged with secretly installing a recording device in a conference room to glean company details had been "mere days" away from absconding to Saudi Arabia before his arrest, federal prosecutors said in new court filings.
What's still developing
- An ex-OpenAI engineer accused of planting a recording device in an executive conference room at the AI company appears to have received considerable support from the Saudi government, United States prosecutors have said in a court filing.
- He said meeting Prince Mohammed bin Salman, then deputy crown prince, during a 2016 gathering with young Saudi tech workers in Silicon Valley persuaded him to learn at a top tech company before bringing those skills back home.
- A Saudi national charged with secretly planting a recording device in one of OpenAI's meeting rooms has been accused of having "considerable support" from the Saudi government, according to a court filing, external in California.
- In an 11-page filing, prosecutors wrote that investigators recovered evidence suggesting Alfozan may have planned to place even more devices inside OpenAI offices.
- A former OpenAI engineer accused of secretly planting listening devices inside the artificial intelligence giant's facilities was communicating with Saudi royalty and searching company records involving the Kingdom before his arrest, according to federal prosecutors who are investigating whether his alleged surveillance was intended to benefit a foreign government.
- Prosecutors revealed in a detention filing Sunday that Saudi government officials helped arrange international travel for Alfozan's wife and his three-month-old son shortly after he was arrested.
- Earlier on this story 13 Oct: Federal Prosecutors Charge Abdulrahman Alfozan With Eavesdropping After OpenAI Finds Hidden Recorder This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets.
- He also appears to have used a chatbot account associated with his spouse to ask various technical questions about setting up a covert audio recording device, according to prosecutors and the court filing.
- Alfozan, a Saudi national, had worked as an OpenAI engineer since July 2025, according to DOJ.
- Prosecutors’ newly filed detention memo adds allegations about Saudi contacts, family travel assistance and phone evidence.
- "discussions of highly confidential technical, commercial, and strategic information, including proprietary research, as well as nonpublic information."
- Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old Saudi national, was also fired from his job at the creator of ChatGPT, according to a government memo filed on Sunday.