Caught OpenAI Spy Was Working for Saudi Arabia: Arrest Warrant Issued

Former engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan, who allegedly planted a secret recording device in the OpenAI office, will be detained on suspicion of escape.

A former OpenAI engineer is facing allegations that he planted a secret recording device in an OpenAI office to record the company's confidential meetings. The US court decided to keep the defendant in detention on the grounds that he was at risk of fleeing abroad.

It is claimed that the engineer named Abdulrahman Alfozan is working to obtain strategic information within OpenAI. The US government alleges that the defendant committed these actions for personal gain or for the interests of Saudi Arabia.

Espionage Allegations and FBI Findings

During investigations by the FBI, a folder named "Saudi Gov Docs" was detected on Alfozan's iPhone device. It is stated that this folder contains photographs of secret recording devices placed in the office.

According to the investigation file, Alfozan used specially modified devices to record secret meetings at OpenAI. The defendant allegedly set these devices to automatically record when they detected speech.

The FBI determined that Alfozan was communicating with a member of the Saudi Arabian royal family via WhatsApp. In the correspondence, emphasis on Saudi Arabia's artificial intelligence goals draws attention.

It was also alleged that the defendant used the company's own productivity tools to investigate secret meeting rooms at OpenAI. It is among the allegations that Alfozan took advantage of his wife's ChatGPT account to bypass the security of the meeting rooms.

OpenAI spotted one of the devices in question about two weeks ago from a secret meeting. The device was also found to be in the room during a critical meeting attended by US government officials.

Flight Risk and Court Process

The US prosecutor's office argues that Alfozan was making preparations to escape to Saudi Arabia and received support from a foreign government in the process. It is stated that the defendant bought one-way flight tickets paid by the Saudi government for himself, his wife and his child.

After Alfozan's arrest, his wife and child left the United States on a flight to Saudi Arabia via Qatar. The prosecutor's office states that the defendant's large amount of savings and bank accounts in Saudi Arabia strengthen the possibility of his escape.

The court cited a similar espionage case involving Twitter employees as a precedent. The US government emphasized that Alfozan had no incentive to remain in America and that he posed a risk to national security.

Magistrate Judge Alex G. Tse ruled that Alfozan be detained while the defense process continues. The defendant was working at OpenAI with an annual salary of $325,000 and a stock grant of $2.2 million.

While Alfozan's lawyers manage the process, the government states that more serious accusations may come to the fore as evidence increases. The United States is concerned that the defendant could use the information he obtained to advance Saudi Arabia's artificial intelligence goals.