Ex-OpenAI Engineer Accused of Planting Device Allegedly Had Saudi Government Backing, Prosecutors Claim

United States prosecutors have alleged in a court filing that an ex-OpenAI engineer accused of planting a recording device in an executive conference room at the AI company appears to have received significant support from the Saudi government. Federal prosecutors claim that the defendant, Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, maintained frequent communication with an unnamed member of the Saudi royal family. Furthermore, a Saudi military official reportedly paid for a one-way plane ticket for Alfozan’s wife and young son to return to Saudi Arabia following his arrest, according to the court document made public on Sunday.

Prosecutors put forth these allegations as they urged a federal judge to detain Alfozan in US custody pending trial, citing him as a flight risk. Alfozan, a Saudi national and lawful permanent resident in the US, is slated to appear in federal court in San Francisco on Monday. The case underscores the security challenges surrounding sensitive AI research amidst intense competition among companies and governments for an advantage in this transformative technology.

“The defendant went to significant lengths to create customized, encrypted recording devices to secretly record highly sensitive meetings involving senior OpenAI personnel and executives, high-level business counterparts, and government officials, all while communicating with individuals of significance in Saudi Arabia and pursuing opportunities in — and making plans to travel to — Saudi Arabia,” prosecutors stated in a detention memo. The Saudi government media office and a lawyer for Alfozan did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The lawyer, William Pernik, had previously requested Alfozan’s release from custody, proposing conditions such as location monitoring and passport surrender. Pernik noted that Alfozan had resided in the US for the past 15 years and had applied for citizenship. According to a court filing, the lawyer also stated that Alfozan’s planned trip to Saudi Arabia this month was booked before the investigation began and was for “family and immigration reasons.”

US prosecutors charged Alfozan last week with using an electronic device to intercept oral communications. A criminal complaint details that Alfozan plugged a recording device into the back of a television in an executive conference room at one of OpenAI’s San Francisco buildings. Prosecutors’ detention memo indicates that meetings involving government officials took place in the conference room around the time the device was installed. Prosecutors also stated that the investigation is ongoing and that additional charges may be filed against Alfozan.

Messages cited by prosecutors reveal that a member of the Saudi royal family sought to recruit Alfozan for an AI-focused role in Saudi Arabia, with one message stating, “Saudi needs you more then [sic] the US!” Alfozan reportedly replied, “100.” Before his arrest, Alfozan was scheduled to fly to Riyadh during a planned two-month parental leave. His wife informed investigators that she and their son intended to relocate permanently to Saudi Arabia, and that Alfozan eventually planned to join them, according to prosecutors.

In an Arabic-language interview on the Identity Capital podcast last month, Alfozan mentioned visiting Saudi Arabia three to four times a year, keeping abreast of developments there, and advising or mentoring Saudi startups. He shared that meeting Prince Mohammed bin Salman, then deputy crown prince, during a 2016 gathering with young Saudi tech workers in Silicon Valley inspired him to gain experience at a top tech company before returning to his home country with those skills. While employed at Facebook, Alfozan and other Saudis in Silicon Valley established a consulting initiative connecting Saudi public and private sector organizations with expertise in big data, the internet of things, and machine learning.

OpenAI previously announced it discovered the device on September 30 and referred the matter to the FBI. Al Jazeera has reached out to the Saudi embassy for comment.