Anthropic has open-sourced a project called Claude-Desktop-Buddy — a coin-sized AI desktop pet. It shows Claude's working status (writing code, waiting for approval, idle), and you can approve or reject Claude's actions with one press on the device itself. Even better, it ships with 18 ASCII critter animations — sleeping, busy, celebrating, and more — that cycle without repeating. The whole build takes one dev board and 10 minutes.

Preparation

Required Hardware

• M5StickC Plus dev board (from Shenzhen's M5Stack; about 80-120 RMB on Taobao)
• A computer (macOS / Windows / Linux all fine)
• A USB-C data cable

Note: The M5StickC Plus has already sold out on Taobao because of the project's popularity; the newer Plus 2 or Stick S3 also work.

Required Software

• Claude Code (Anthropic's coding tool)
• Bluetooth connectivity

Estimated Time

10 minutes

Step by Step

Step 1: Get the Dev Board

Buy an M5StickC Plus. The board comes from Shenzhen-based M5Stack, is built on an Espressif ESP32 chip, and includes a screen, microphone, speaker, infrared, gyroscope, and buttons — all for under 100 RMB.

18 built-in ASCII critters, each with a full animation set

Step 2: Clone the Open-Source Project

git clone https://github.com/anthropics/claude-desktop-buddy.git
cd claude-desktop-buddy

Step 3: Let Claude Handle the Flashing

This step is the easiest — connect the board to your computer over USB, turn on Bluetooth, and hand the flashing docs to Claude Code:

Please follow the instructions in the README to flash Claude-Desktop-Buddy onto my M5StickC Plus

Claude compiles the firmware and flashes the board automatically. No manual dev-environment setup at any point.

Tip: If flashing fails, check that the USB driver is installed correctly (macOS usually needs no extra driver; Windows may need the CP210X driver).

Step 4: Pair over Bluetooth

Once flashing finishes, the board enters Bluetooth standby. Search for the device on your computer and connect; once paired, the desktop pet is live.

What It Looks Like in Use

After pairing, the pet mirrors Claude's working status in real time:

• When idle: the critter falls asleep and occasionally rolls over
• Claude at work: the critter scurries around busily
• Waiting for approval: the critter grows visibly impatient
• Task complete: the critter celebrates and cheers

Plenty of developers have already reproduced Claude-Desktop-Buddy

Going Further

Voice-Control Claude

A developer, passyear999, added a page on top of the source code: a button press triggers Typeless voice input, and a long press sends it — turning the board into a physical remote for voice-controlling Claude.

The modified version supports voice input to control Claude

A Bigger Screen

If the M5StickC Plus's screen feels too small, try building on a larger dev board for a better display.

FAQ

• Can't get an M5StickC Plus?: try the newer M5StickC Plus 2 or M5StickS3, though the firmware config may need small tweaks
• Bluetooth won't connect?: make sure the firmware flashed correctly, restart the board, and retry
• Display cut off?: check that the firmware version matches your board model
• Is it actually useful?: for now it's mostly a desk pet, but the approval feature and the voice-control mod already show real utility

Project address: github.com/anthropics/claude-desktop-buddy