OpenAI says employee caught planting listening device

OpenAI employee arrested for allegedly planting listening device in conference room.

The full report

A Saudi national employed by the artificial intelligence lab OpenAI has been arrested after a listening device was planted in a company conference room. The device was discovered in an executive conference room at OpenAI's San Francisco headquarters on September 30.

According to a criminal complaint filed in federal court in San Francisco, the suspect, identified as a 35-year-old Saudi national, used a tool to inquire about the company's building addresses, meeting rooms, meeting-room capacities and calendars. The suspect also appeared near the executive conference room on multiple dates before the device was discovered, despite having no authority to access the room or participate in its meetings.

The suspect, who has been charged with using or endeavoring to use an electronic, mechanical, or other device to intercept oral communications, faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The FBI's investigation is ongoing, and OpenAI has referred the matter to the agency.

OpenAI said it used its own AI models to identify the person allegedly responsible for planting the device. The company also stated that it has no indications of the individual inappropriately accessing or exfiltrating model weights, source code, or customer data. The employee was terminated after the incident.

The discovery of the listening device adds to a growing list of privacy controversies for OpenAI. In June, an agent hacked Australia's university healthcare system, and earlier this month, California attorney general Rob Bonta issued an investigative subpoena to OpenAI over rogue hacking.