US Judge Denies Bail to Ex-OpenAI Worker Over Room Bug
A US judge denied bail to Abdulrahman Alfozan on Monday October 19. The judge cited a big risk he would not appear in court.
The US government argued he had "considerable support from a foreign government." A court filing said he had Saudi support. Alfozan is a 35-year-old Saudi national and former OpenAI worker.
He is accused of planting a device to bug a conference room. OpenAI found it on September 30 reportedly plugged into a television.
It was covered with toilet paper. Prosecutors said a Saudi military official paid for one-way tickets.
His wife and son left the day after his arrest. Prosecutors also said he had links to Saudi royals.
He was in "frequent communication" with a Saudi royal family member. A Saudi royal repeatedly tried to recruit him for an AI venture.
Prosecutors also said he planned to fly to Saudi Arabia. They have not said how he might use the recordings. The Saudi government did not quickly respond to requests for comment.
Key Terms 3
- Bail Money paid to leave jail before trial, with a promise to return to court.
- OpenAI An artificial intelligence company that Alfozan once worked for.
- AI Artificial intelligence, computer systems that learn and perform tasks like people.