Anthropic open‑sources desktop buddy

Anthropic has published an open-source project called Claude Desktop Buddy that turns small Bluetooth devices into companion displays for its desktop AI products. The code is available on GitHub under the `anthropics/claude-desktop-buddy` repository, which Anthropic describes as a reference implementation for a Bluetooth API used by Claude Cowork and Claude Code on macOS and Windows. The repository says the device can show permission prompts, recent messages and other interactions from a running Claude session. Anthropic says the sample firmware targets ESP32 hardware and was built as “a desk pet on ESP32.” ### What exactly did Anthropic release? Anthropic’s GitHub repository says Claude Desktop Buddy is both a working example and a protocol reference for hardware makers. The README says developers do not need to reuse Anthropic’s code directly, because the companion protocol is documented separately in `REFERENCE.md` and can be implemented on other hardware. Anthropic says Claude for macOS and Windows can connect to maker devices over Bluetooth Low Energy, or BLE. (github.com) The repository’s example device uses ESP32 firmware with the Arduino framework and depends on the M5StickC Plus library for display, motion sensor and button drivers. Anthropic says the example device sleeps when idle, wakes when sessions start, shows when an approval prompt is waiting and lets the user approve or deny from the device itself. ### How does the Bluetooth link work? Anthropic’s protocol document says the desktop apps use the Nordic UART Service, a common serial-over-BLE pattern, and exchange newline-delimited JSON messages. (github.com) The document says any device that can advertise that BLE service and parse the JSON format can work, including Arduino boards, ESP32 devices, nRF52 hardware or a Raspberry Pi with a BLE dongle. The same document says Claude’s desktop app sends a “heartbeat snapshot whenever something changes, plus a keepalive every 10 seconds.” Those snapshots can include counts of total sessions, running sessions, waiting sessions, recent transcript lines, token counts and a permission prompt object when user approval is needed. Anthropic says the device can echo back the prompt ID as part of the approval flow. (github.com) ### Where does this show up inside Claude? Anthropic says the BLE bridge is turned off by default in Claude for macOS and Windows. The company’s setup instructions say users must first enable Developer Mode through the Help and Troubleshooting menus, then open a “Hardware Buddy” window from the Developer menu and select the device from a scan list. Anthropic says macOS asks for Bluetooth permission on first connect and that the bridge reconnects automatically after pairing. (github.com) The GitHub documentation ties the feature to Claude Cowork and Claude Code Desktop. Anthropic describes Claude Cowork as a desktop system for multi-step knowledge work on local files and applications, while Claude Code is its agentic coding product for working across codebases and toolchains. ### Why does the project matter to hardware developers? Anthropic’s repository says outside developers can ignore the sample firmware and build their own device around the published protocol. (github.com) That lowers the barrier for makers who want a companion display, button controller or other peripheral that mirrors Claude session state without reverse-engineering the desktop app. GitHub’s public repository page showed about 1,700 stars and 250 forks when viewed on May 16. (github.com) Search results also show community ports and derivative projects for other ESP32-based boards, including M5StickS3 and AMOLED variants, indicating developers have already started adapting the reference design to different hardware. ### What can developers do next? Anthropic’s documentation says the next step is to enable Developer Mode in Claude for macOS or Windows, pair a BLE device through the Hardware Buddy window and implement the published JSON protocol if they want custom hardware. (github.com) The repository also includes flashing instructions through PlatformIO Core for the reference ESP32 firmware. As of May 16, the project remained publicly available on GitHub with the protocol reference in `REFERENCE.md` and setup material in the repository docs.