A former OpenAI engineer has been accused of planting a recording device in an executive conference room at the artificial intelligence company appears to have received significant support from the Saudi government, according to a US court filing, as reported by Reuters.
Federal prosecutors allege that Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, a Saudi national and lawful permanent resident of the US, was in frequent communication with an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family.
A Saudi military official also allegedly paid for a one-way plane ticket for Alfozan's wife and young son to return to Saudi Arabia after his arrest, Reuters reported.
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Prosecutors made the allegations while asking a federal judge to keep Alfozan in US custody until his trial, arguing that he poses a flight risk. He was scheduled to appear in federal court in San Francisco on Monday.
What Is The OpenAI Recording Device Case?
US prosecutors charged Alfozan last week with using an electronic device to intercept oral communications. According to a criminal complaint, he allegedly plugged a recording device into the back of a television in an executive conference room at one of OpenAI's offices in San Francisco.
The room was used for meetings involving senior company executives, business partners and government officials. Prosecutors said the device was designed to secretly record highly sensitive discussions.
OpenAI discovered the device on September 30 and referred the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
In a detention memo, prosecutors alleged that Alfozan had gone to considerable lengths to create customised, encrypted recording devices to capture confidential meetings. The investigation remains active, and authorities said additional charges could be brought against him.
Saudi Royal Family Member Allegedly Sought To Recruit Alfozan
The court filing also highlighted communications between Alfozan and individuals in Saudi Arabia, including an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family.
Prosecutors also said Alfozan had plans to travel to Riyadh during a scheduled two-month parental leave. His wife told investigators that she and their son intended to move permanently to Saudi Arabia and that Alfozan eventually planned to join them.
The Saudi government media office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
OpenAI Security Concerns
The case has raised questions about the security of sensitive artificial intelligence research as companies and governments compete to gain an advantage in the rapidly developing technology sector.
The recording device was allegedly installed in a conference room where meetings involving government officials took place around the time it was set up, according to the prosecutors' detention memo.
OpenAI previously said it had discovered a sophisticated recording device concealed inside one of its offices. The company said it used its own AI models to understand the device and identify the employee allegedly responsible.
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OpenAI has also said it had no indications that Alfozan improperly accessed or extracted model weights, source code or customer data.
The investigation is ongoing, and the allegations against Alfozan have yet to be established at trial.
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