SAN FRANCISCO, US – OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, says an employee was arrested after a sophisticated recording device was discovered in one of its San Francisco offices, prompting a federal investigation into alleged unlawful interception of oral communications.
The 35-year-old Saudi national, who worked as an engineer, was arrested on Friday, about a week after the device was found in a conference room, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court in San Francisco.
OpenAI said it reported the discovery to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and dismissed the employee. The investigation is ongoing.
The suspect appeared in court on Tuesday and was charged with using or attempting to use an electronic, mechanical or other device to intercept oral communications.
The criminal complaint does not specify what the suspect allegedly intended to do with any recordings. It states, however, that the employee used a tool to seek information about the company’s building addresses, meeting rooms, room capacities and calendars.
How The Recording Device Was Discovered
OpenAI said it identified the employee after examining the device and using its AI models to help determine its origin.
“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,” a company spokesperson told the Associated Press.
The spokesperson added that OpenAI had found no evidence that the individual had improperly accessed or extracted the company’s model weights, source code or customer data.
According to the US Department of Justice, the suspect allegedly wrapped a USB device in toilet paper and concealed it inside a television in an executive conference room.
Investigators said surveillance footage showed the employee near the room several times despite not being authorised to attend meetings there.
After the activity was noticed, another camera was installed in the room. The footage allegedly captured the suspect checking on the concealed device.
Federal Investigation Underway
The case centres on allegations that the device was intended to intercept private oral communications.
OpenAI’s statement that it had found no indication of unauthorised access to its proprietary AI models, source code or customer data addresses a separate concern from the alleged recording-device incident.
The case comes amid heightened attention to the protection of confidential information and the security of sensitive workplace meetings at technology companies.
The suspect’s arrest and the charges remain allegations, and the case will proceed through the US federal justice system.
