Federal prosecutors have announced charges against Abdulrahman Alfozan, a Saudi national, over a hidden recording device that they say he secretly placed inside an OpenAI office in California. Alfozan worked at the artificial intelligence company as an engineer, according to prosecutors, and has held that role since July 2025.
He has been charged federally with using, or attempting to use, an electronic, mechanical or other device to intercept oral communications.
Device found in a San Francisco conference room
OpenAI said it discovered a “sophisticated recording device” hidden in its San Francisco office and alerted the FBI. The company said it used its own AI models to trace the device and identify the employee who had planted it.
Prosecutors said the device was wrapped in toilet paper and pushed into a USB port on the back of a television in an executive conference room. It was encrypted, they said. Employees found it on 30 September, two days after prosecutors say it had been installed.
OpenAI, the maker of the chatbot ChatGPT, said it had no indication that source code, model weights or customer data were improperly accessed or taken. The company said the employee had been fired.
Chatbot searches and CCTV link suspect to the device
According to the FBI, Alfozan used a “productivity tool” and a “chatbot” to research sensitive locations at OpenAI and methods for secretly installing audio equipment. Prosecutors allege that his prompts included requests about building, customising, installing, testing, obfuscating and remotely accessing a device.
He is also accused of asking the chatbot about building a continuous audio recorder, customising Wi-Fi connectivity, improving live listening and encrypting an SD card, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors say Alfozan returned to check on the device on 5 October. They used CCTV footage to place him at the scene. That same day, he allegedly left a bag unattended in another part of the building.
A security team for OpenAI opened the bag and found his wallet and identification, along with another recording device similar to the one in the conference room, prosecutors said.
Court appearance and potential penalties
FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement that, according to the complaint, Alfozan allegedly concealed a covert recording device inside his employer’s executive conference room to secretly capture sensitive communications. Patel said the alleged goal was to gather information about the company’s AI product.
Alfozan appeared in court on Tuesday. It is unclear whether he has legal representation.
If found guilty, he faces up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 (£187,000).
