Back www.washingtonpost.com

FBI arrests OpenAI employee for allegedly planting bug in office

www.washingtonpost.com • October 14, 2026

SAN FRANCISCO — The FBI arrested an employee of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI last week after the company discovered a “sophisticated” recording device in an executive conference room at its offices.

Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old citizen of Saudi Arabia who has been working at OpenAI since July 2025, was arrested Oct. 9 and appeared in federal court on Tuesday. He was charged with using a listening device to “intercept oral communications,” the Justice Department said in a statement.

The full story

This article is one source in a clustered incident — the cluster page carries the summary, timeline and every other outlet covering it.

OpenAI Engineer Arrested for Planting Recording Device in Executive Conference Room Abdulrahman Alfozan, a 35-year-old Saudi national and OpenAI engineer, was arrested on October 9, 2026, for allegedly planting a covert audio recording device in an executive conference room at OpenAI's San Francisco headquarters. The device, discovered on September 30, was concealed in toilet paper and plugged into a USB port on a television. Alfozan had been employed at OpenAI since July 2025 and was not authorized to access the room where sensitive discussions occurred. Surveillance footage showed him near the room multiple times before the device was found. Additionally, a chatbot account linked to Alfozan's spouse was used to submit prompts related to building and concealing recording devices. OpenAI reported the incident to the FBI, which is now investigating the case. If convicted, Alfozan faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. 38 sources 46

Extracted Entities

Countries (1)

Saudi Arabia