“Gee, I know that today’s phones are pretty smart, but programed to explode? “
Coincidence that I was watching episode 8 of The Americans’ and that’s how one of the KGB guys hit one of the US scientists.
He likely means to have the phone used as a remote trigger for explosives. Something like this...
“GSM Based Cell Phone Controlled Remote Switching Circuit”
http://homemadecircuitsandschematics.blogspot.com/2012/01/how-to-build-gsm-based-cell-phone.html