A folder labeled “Saudi Gov Docs” is among the details US prosecutors cited in arguing that former OpenAI engineer Abdulrahman Alfozan should remain detained. The government alleges that he secretly recorded sensitive meetings at OpenAI and had reasons and means to leave the United States. A judge agreed to keep him in custody while the case proceeds.
Why prosecutors argued against release
In a court filing, US attorney Craig Missakian said Alfozan posed a flight risk. The government pointed to an alleged one-way trip to Riyadh booked for Alfozan, his wife and their baby, which it said was paid for by the Saudi government. After Alfozan’s arrest, his wife and son reportedly booked an earlier flight and left the United States without him.
Prosecutors also alleged that a member of the Saudi military arranged and paid for another one-way ticket, this time for Alfozan’s wife and son to Doha, Qatar. They said Alfozan had “at least two bank accounts in Saudi Arabia” and resources from a decade of high-tech work in the Bay Area.
The government argued that taking his Saudi passport did not remove the risk of flight, because he might obtain other travel documents or receive help. Magistrate Judge Alex G. Tse agreed at a hearing on Monday that Alfozan should remain detained while defending himself, Business Insider reported.
Alleged recording devices at OpenAI
According to the government filing, OpenAI found a recording device hidden in a conference room roughly two weeks before Alfozan’s planned trip. Prosecutors said it had been in place for “at least multiple days,” including during a meeting with US government officials.
The filing alleges that Alfozan used an OpenAI productivity agent to look into which conference rooms might be useful for spying. It also says logs showed searches, using his wife’s personal ChatGPT account, about modifying recording devices to start when they detected speech and to allow remote access.
After searching Alfozan’s home, the FBI allegedly found devices similar to the one discovered at OpenAI. Prosecutors also cited iPhone photographs they said showed at least one additional concealed recorder and panels on televisions and other electronic equipment in OpenAI buildings, including another conference room used for sensitive meetings.
Messages, browser activity and the folder
The government said Alfozan’s phone contained WhatsApp conversations with “a member of the Saudi Royal Family.” The messages allegedly began in 2025, the year he started at OpenAI, and continued up to October 5. In one exchange, he replied “100” to a message urging that “Saudi needs you more then [sic] the US!”
On October 4, according to prosecutors, Alfozan accessed a folder called “Saudi Gov Docs” on his iPhone. The government did not disclose what the folder contained. It did cite a later query to OpenAI’s productivity agent asking which people at the company might be suited to attend a high-level informal meeting with Saudi ministers.
The filing places those details alongside Alfozan’s alleged plans to move back to Saudi Arabia. Prosecutors said he had discussed returning while his wife’s student visa had expired and he planned to use two months of paid time off to help her and their baby relocate. He was hired as an OpenAI engineer in or around July 2025, with an annual base salary of $325,000 and a new hire equity grant of $2,200,000 in profit participation units, according to the filing.
What the case alleges
The government says Alfozan’s alleged actions could pose a danger to US national security and argues that evidence could lead to more serious charges. It cited a separate case involving former Twitter employees charged with spying for the Saudi government, including allegations that a Saudi foreign official helped coordinate a flight after Twitter confronted one employee.
Alfozan is accused of illegally recording meetings and faces a maximum sentence of five years for that offense, the article reports. The claims about espionage, devices, contacts and travel plans remain allegations described by prosecutors in support of detention. The court’s decision means Alfozan will remain in custody while mounting his defense; it does not establish the truth of those allegations.