OpenAI Discovers Concealed Recording Device in Office, Traces It to Employee

Naturally, the company turned to its own AI for guidance.

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Federal prosecutors have arrested and charged a Saudi national accused of planting a sophisticated recording device inside OpenAI’s San Francisco headquarters. According to the San Francisco Standard, Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35‑year‑old engineer who joined the company in July 2025, is alleged to have concealed the device in an executive conference room he was not authorized to use.

We discovered a sophisticated recording device that was hidden inside one of our offices. We used our models to understand the device and where it had come from, identifying that a specific employee had planted it a few days earlier. We referred the matter to the FBI, and we’re…

— OpenAI Newsroom (@OpenAINewsroom) October 13, 2026

The complaint, reviewed by the San Francisco Standard, states that meetings in that room often involved confidential information, including product roadmap details, research plans, and government engagements. OpenAI discovered the device on September 30, plugged into a USB port on the rear of a television. Alfozan allegedly concealed it with toilet paper. Prosecutors say he used a productivity tool to gather information about the company’s facilities and may have consulted a chatbot for instructions on building, installing, and hiding a remote recording device. On a chatbot account linked to his spouse, investigators reportedly found prompts asking the AI how to “build a continuous audio recorder” and “encrypt the SD card.”

In a statement posted to X, OpenAI said it employed its own AI models to “understand the device,” which it also described as sophisticated. The company added that, at this time, there is no evidence the individual accessed or exfiltrated model weights, source code, or customer data. The employee has been terminated. OpenAI did not immediately respond to Engadget’s request for comment.

OpenAI determined the device was installed around September 28. On October 5, Alfozan allegedly left a bag elsewhere in the office; security personnel found his wallet, ID, and a second recording device inside. He made his initial court appearance on Tuesday. If convicted, he faces up to five years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release.

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