OpenAI Engineer Accused of Secretly Recording Executives Was in Contact With Saudi Royal, Days Before Arrest

An OpenAI engineer accused of planting a secret recording device in a sensitive executive conference room was in frequent WhatsApp contact with a member of the Saudi Royal Family, including as recently as four days before his arrest, according to prosecutors. The revelation emerged in a new court filing seeking the detention of Saudi national Abdulrahman Alfozan, 35, who was arrested Oct. 9 and faces a federal charge over the alleged interception of oral communications. As reported, the filing does not identify the Saudi royal or say that the royal directed Alfozan to install the recording device or obtain information from OpenAI. However, prosecutors said the royal repeatedly attempted to recruit Alfozan for an artificial intelligence initiative being launched in Saudi Arabia.