FBI arrests OpenAI employee for placing an audio recording device inside company conference room

FBI Director Kash Patel announced Tuesday that the bureau has arrested an OpenAI employee who was allegedly caught having placed an audio recording device inside the company's executive conference room in San Francisco, California.

Officials have identified the man as Saudi Arabian national Abdulrahman Alfozan, who was arrested on October 9. 

OpenAI said they immediately contacted the FBI after they discovered the device and Alfozan was allegedly caught on the company's CCTV cameras.

“Abdulrahman Alfozan allegedly concealed a covert recording device inside his employer’s executive conference room to secretly capture sensitive communications about the company’s super intelligence technology,” Patel said in a statement. “Protecting American SI innovation is essential to safeguarding our nation’s economic strength and national security, and the FBI views that mission as one of our highest counterintelligence priorities."

According to the complaint, Alfozan had been employed as an engineer by OpenAI since July 2025. 

OpenAI personnel discovered an audio recording device inserted into a USB port on the back of a television in an executive conference room inside one of their buildings in San Francisco. OpenAI determined that the device, which had been concealed in toilet paper, was installed on or about Sept. 28, and its contents were encrypted. 

Footage inside OpenAI’s office showed Alfozan near the executive conference room on multiple dates prior to the device’s discovery, although he had no authority to access or to participate in meetings that occurred in the room.

The complaint also alleges that another of Alfozan's bags was discovered in another room, which contained a second recording device and Alfozan’s wallet and ID.

If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, followed by three years of supervised release. 

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.