Robotics engineer Ben Zhang faced a common but frustrating problem: he lost his phone in the office. After searching for over 30 minutes, panic began to set in. His usual solution, Apple's 'Find My' service, was rendered useless due to his company's Mobile Device Management (MDM) policies, which had disabled the feature.
Turning to AI for a Solution
Out of options, Zhang turned to Anthropic's Claude AI. He described his predicament: a lost phone in the office, 'Find My' disabled, and only his laptop available. Claude quickly analyzed the situation, identifying that while location services were off, the phone's Bluetooth radio was likely still broadcasting a small identifying signal, or beacon, in the background.
Building a Real-Time Bluetooth Signal Meter
Claude suggested tracking the phone's raw Bluetooth signal strength (RSSI) from the laptop. Zhang then asked for code, and within approximately 60 seconds, Claude generated a custom Swift script for macOS. This script functioned as a real-time Bluetooth signal strength meter.
Zhang ran the script on his Mac, transforming his laptop into a signal detector. He walked around the office, observing the live signal strength meter. As he moved closer to his phone, the Bluetooth signal became stronger, effectively acting as a digital compass.
Phone Recovered, AI's Practical Use Highlighted
The signal meter guided him to a workstation, where he successfully located his missing phone. This innovative use case demonstrates how artificial intelligence can extend beyond typical chatbot functionalities and content generation to develop practical, real-world tools that solve everyday problems.
Ben Zhang shared his experience on social media: "Lost my phone at the office and spent 30 minutes turning the place over. Find My was disabled by MDM. Out of ideas, I asked Claude how I could find it. It suggested tracking the Bluetooth signal strength, then wrote me a meter in about a minute."