OpenAI Engineer Faces Federal Charges Over Recording Device

Federal prosecutors charged OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, after he allegedly placed a hidden recording device in an executive conference room at OpenAI’s San Francisco offices to capture confidential discussions, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Alfozan, a Saudi Arabian national, was arrested Friday and appeared in federal court Tuesday. He remains in federal custody and faces a charge involving the interception of oral communications.

According to the complaint, OpenAI employees found the recorder on September 30 behind a television in an executive conference room. The device was connected through a USB port, concealed in toilet paper, and contained encrypted storage, prosecutors said.

The complaint said OpenAI determined the device had been installed around September 28 in a room used for discussions about confidential research, product plans, business strategy, government engagements, and commercial relationships.

Investigators alleged surveillance footage showed Alfozan near the conference room multiple times before the device was discovered, despite having no authorization to access the area or attend meetings there. The complaint also said he joined OpenAI in July 2025.

Prosecutors said investigators reviewed inquiries from a productivity tool about building addresses, meeting rooms, calendars, and leadership or partner meeting locations. They also examined a chatbot account linked to Alfozan’s spouse that shared identifiers with his account.

According to the complaint, the spouse’s account submitted prompts about creating and concealing a continuous audio recorder, adding Wi-Fi connectivity, remote listening, and encrypting a memory card. The account also included details matching the recovered device on September 27 and 28.

The complaint said Alfozan entered the conference room on October 5 and appeared to look behind the television where the recorder had been placed. Security personnel found an unattended bag that day containing his wallet, identification, and another similar recording device.

OpenAI said it dismissed the employee and used its AI models during an internal review to help identify who had installed the device. The company said it referred the matter to federal authorities.

"We referred the matter to the FBI, and we’re grateful to the agents and prosecutors who moved quickly to make an arrest. The FBI’s investigation is ongoing and we will continue to support their work," said OpenAI.

OpenAI said there were no indications that the employee improperly accessed or removed AI model weights, source code, or customer data. If convicted, Alfozan could face up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.