Key facts
- OpenAI said it informed the FBI after discovering the surveillance device.
- OpenAI staff found an audio recording device in a USB port of a television in a San Francisco executive conference room on September 30.
- The device had been placed there around September 28, wrapped in toilet paper and containing encrypted material.
- Alfozan was fired by OpenAI and arrested by federal authorities on October 9.
Abdulrahman Alfozan was charged with using a device to intercept oral communications and was arrested by federal authorities on October 9, following OpenAI’s discovery of an audio recording device in a USB port of a television in a San Francisco executive conference room on September 30.
Alfozan is a 35‑year‑old Saudi national who joined OpenAI’s product team in July 2025. Someone had placed the device around September 28, wrapped in toilet paper and containing encrypted material.
CCTV footage showed Alfozan looking behind the television where someone had hidden the device on October 5. On October 5, security staff found an unattended bag containing Alfozan’s wallet, ID and a second recording device like the first.
OpenAI said it informed the FBI after discovering the surveillance device. OpenAI said it used its own internal AI models to analyze the device and to trace it back to Alfozan.
OpenAI said there is no evidence that Alfozan accessed or exfiltrated model weights, source code, or customer data. FBI Director Kash Patel stated that the device’s purpose was to capture sensitive communications about OpenAI’s superintelligence technology.
Prosecutors said chatbot prompts linked to Alfozan or his spouse’s account included queries on building and encrypting a continuous audio recorder. The prompts also covered remote access and were submitted between September 24 and 30.
OpenAI told investigators that the device featured advanced encryption, audio monitoring functions and a mechanism for moving data that aimed to avoid detection. If convicted, Alfozan faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and up to three years of supervised release.
Prosecutors are prosecuting the case under National Security Presidential Memorandum 11, which ties the offense to protecting American superiority in superintelligence technology. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton described AI development as a national security prerogative.
The Department of Justice described the case as one of the most significant corporate espionage cases in the AI sector to date.
Join the discussion