OpenAI engineer arrested for hiding a "sophisticated" recorder in a meeting room

BarcelonaAn OpenAI engineer has been arrested and charged in the United States for hiding a recording device in an executive meeting room at the company's San Francisco office to intercept confidential conversations. The case came to light after the company announced on X this Wednesday that it had discovered a "sophisticated" hidden recording device and had alerted the FBI. According to the federal prosecutor's office, the 35-year-old Saudi engineer, Abdulrahman Alfozan, allegedly placed the device behind a television and consulted artificial intelligence tools to prepare for its installation.

In the statement, OpenAI claims that it used its own models to understand the device and identify the employee who allegedly installed it. The company asserts that it has no evidence that the individual improperly accessed its technology code or customer data, nor that any was taken. It also confirms that it has fired him and that it will continue to cooperate with the authorities.

A recorder with encrypted memory

The recorder was discovered on September 30, wrapped in toilet paper and connected to a USB port on the back of a television. According to the complaint, it had been installed two days earlier and contained an encrypted memory card that security personnel were unable to decrypt. The room was used for meetings on technical, commercial, and strategic matters of the company.

Alfozan had worked as an engineer at OpenAI since July 2025. According to investigators, he had consulted a chatbot on how to build a continuous audio recorder, configure its wifi connection, listen to recordings live, and encrypt the memory card. On October 5, he had returned to check the device and, that same day, security personnel found a second similar recorder in his bag. He was arrested on October 9 and is accused of attempting to intercept oral communications, a crime that can carry up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

AI, a tool for crime and for detecting it

The case illustrates the double-sided nature of artificial intelligence: according to the Public Prosecutor's Office, the accused allegedly used a chatbot to prepare the device, while OpenAI asserts that its models helped identify him. Thus, the same technology that facilitated the crime also contributed to detecting it.

The FBI investigation remains ongoing. At the moment, it has not been proven that any conversation was recorded or that any data or technological secrets were stolen from the company.