Claude might soon be able to take control of your smartphone
A hidden toggle labeled “Orbit Beta” was spotted in the Claude mobile app. If it is what the code suggests, Anthropic may be working on letting Claude make calls and control apps directly on your phone.
A hidden toggle labeled “Orbit Beta” has been discovered in the Claude mobile app settings, sitting switched off by default next to other experimental features like web search. Anthropic has not acknowledged it and there is no public documentation. No official announcement has been made.
Based on code references spotted alongside the toggle, Orbit appears to be a mobile extension of Anthropic’s existing Computer Use feature, which currently lets Claude control a Mac desktop. The phone version would go further.
- What the code suggests: New internal tools named
phone_useandphone_call_completedpoint toward Claude making and receiving calls, navigating apps, and handling tasks like sending messages or booking reservations autonomously. - The context: Anthropic has been building toward this in steps. Remote Control launched in February, letting developers monitor Claude Code sessions from their phone. Claude Dispatch followed in March, letting users assign desktop tasks from a phone. Orbit, if real, would flip the script — Claude acting on your phone rather than your phone acting as a remote for your desktop.
The feasibility question is real. Full phone control on iOS is genuinely difficult given Apple’s sandboxing restrictions. Android is seen as a more likely starting point for any launch.
- No timeline: Still in internal testing at best. No statements from Anthropic.
- The reaction on X: Mix of enthusiasm and skepticism, with some users noting the obvious concern of an AI that can make calls on your behalf potentially ending up calling other AIs.
The Bottom Line: Anthropic has been methodical about expanding Claude’s ability to take real-world actions. Orbit fits the pattern. Whether it ships in its current form, gets scaled back, or disappears entirely is anyone’s guess — but the direction of travel is clear.
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