Users use AI agents to remove ads and bloatware from smart TVs

The dumbtv project on GitHub advocates that TVs should only keep apps and HDMI inputs, without built-in ads, viewing tracking, and unsolicited updates; another project, cleanyourtv, claims it can strip bloatware from any Android TV or Google TV over Wi-Fi and replace the launcher with an Apple TV-like style. Developer Gathin T. said he gave his TV model to Claude Code, which found the TV on Wi-Fi, removed 25 Xiaomi packages, and wrote a new launcher; within two days, thousands of people did the same for Xiaomi, TCL, Sony, Fire TV, LG and other devices. These solutions require no root and can restore factory settings. For ordinary TV users wanting to escape boot ads and sluggish interfaces, the barrier has dropped from flashing to giving an AI agent a prompt; for developers building Android TV apps and launchers, this means users may replace the default home screen themselves. The risks are also concrete: some report Claude not responding to simple instructions and needing more complex prompts, while others say they bricked their Android TV or got stuck halfway through modification. If such modifications become widespread, they will disrupt the smart TV advertising business that profits from selling viewing data or serving personalized ads, because automatic content recognition (ACR) on TVs is key to collecting viewing habits. For users who don't want to use AI to modify their TVs, ready-made launcher alternatives like ATV Launcher, Projectivity Launcher, and FLauncher remain available.