The former OpenAI engineer accused of bugging a company conference room must stay in custody while he awaits trial, a federal judge ruled on Monday after expressing concerns about his ties to Saudi Arabia.
US prosecutors alleged Abdulrahman Alfozan is a flight risk because the Saudi Arabian government has offered to support him with no strings attached. They cited, for example, the Saudi consulate’s offer to work with a bail bonds firm to help fund Alfozan’s release.
Federal magistrate judge Alex Tse questioned whether Alfozan is an “asset” for the kingdom and how a bond backed by the government could keep him in the country. “I find that problematic,” Tse said. “It seems like a blank check. ‘We’re going to pay whatever the court wants to get him out.’ I’m more interested in people from his family wanting to put up assets.”
William Pernik, an attorney for Alfozan, dismissed the flight risk worries as baseless. But he failed to convince the judge that Alfozan was committed to his life in the US. “There is a real threat here that once he leaves the case is over,” Tse said.
Aflozan appeared in an orange prison uniform and a medical face mask pulled down over his neck on Monday in Tse’s San Francisco courtroom, which was filled to capacity with journalists, students on a field trip, and about 20 people supporting Alfozan.
Employee attempts to steal confidential company information are common in Silicon Valley. But Alfozan’s case has drawn international attention for the alleged amateur spycraft and geopolitical tensions at the center of it. Authorities haven’t offered a potential motive, but have noted Alfozan has worked for a Saudi venture capital firm, offered consulting services to Saudi companies, and is supposedly friendly with people high up in the Saudi government.
Pernik said there was no evidence of Alfozan spying for Saudi Arabia or engaging in something covert. “It’s not as if he sneaked in under the covers of darkness,” he said of the OpenAI conference room. “This was an open room where anybody could work in.”
After the hour-long hearing, Pernik told reporters he was disappointed with the custody ruling and would continue to try to fight it.
While Alfozan is a US permanent resident who had been on the path to obtaining citizenship, his ties to his native Saudi Arabia have come under scrutiny. Prosecutors allege that Alfozan was “in frequent communications via WhatsApp” with a member of the Saudi royal family throughout 2025 and 2026.
The Saudi royal, who is not identified, was allegedly recruiting Alfozan to return to the country for a job working on a forthcoming AI initiative, according to a court filing. “Saudi needs you more then [sic] the US!” the individual wrote to Alfozan this past May, per the filing. Alfozan allegedly “responded ‘100,’ indicating he agreed.”
US authorities also allege that the Saudi government bought Alfozan's wife and infant son a ticket to return to the country a few days after his arrest. She ended up leaving sooner on another flight booked by her sister’s husband, who works for the Saudi navy, according to attorneys for both sides.
Alfozan's wife has not been accused of wrongdoing and the FBI last week declined to comment on whether she would face any charges.
Alfozan was at OpenAI for just over a year when the AI lab discovered a covert audio recording device hidden in a wad of toilet paper behind a TV in an executive conference room used for confidential business meetings. OpenAI found the device in late September, connected it to Alfozan, and then fired him earlier this month just before the FBI arrested him.
Alfozan faces five years in prison on a single count of using a device to intercept communications, but prosecutors say additional charges are possible. Included among the government’s evidence are alleged conversations between Alfozan and an AI chatbot in which he asked for help setting up listening devices. Prosecutors also produced a photo taken of Alfozan looking behind the TV after OpenAI had removed the recorder. It’s unclear what, if anything, was recorded because the device’s data was encrypted, according to authorities.
Authorities say they also found components for recording devices at Alfozan’s home and photos of other OpenAI monitors and another OpenAI conference room on his phone. OpenAI previously said it recovered a second listening device in a bag Alfozan brought to the office and left unattended.
Pernik claimed the electronics at Alfozan’s home were for home monitoring projects, including trying to improve a smart litter box for their cat. “This is a gentleman who spent 15 years of life immersed at this intersection of technology and personal life,” Pernik told the judge.
Authorities said ahead of the hearing that they believed Alfozan had the means to flee. They cited the $385,000 salary and $2.2 million profit-sharing package he received while working at OpenAI as well as other funds he earned from previous gigs at Meta and other US tech companies.
According to Alfozan's attorneys, his wife needed to leave the US to renew her American student visa. Alfozan had planned to accompany her on the trip before being arrested. They had a one-way ticket to Riyadh, which Alfozan’s attorneys said was typical for him because he sometimes had to return earlier than planned for work.
According to Alfozan's attorneys, his wife needed to leave the US to renew her American student visa. Alfozan had planned to accompany her on the trip before being arrested. They had a one-way ticket to Riyadh, which Alfozan’s attorneys said was typical for him because he sometimes had to return earlier than planned for work.
Nas Yasin, another attorney for Alfozan, said his wife’s flight was booked by her sister’s husband in his personal capacity. Yasin added that Alfozan’s wife had just secured a visitor visa from the US and planned to return to California from Saudi Arabia as soon as Tuesday. Alfozan’s next court date is scheduled for November 6.