Developers and hobbyist coders are now using artificial intelligence to remove advertisements, tracking features, and bloatware from smart televisions, according to a report published by TechCrunch on October 19. The movement, which has gained traction over recent days, centers on using AI coding assistants to strip down TV interfaces to their core functions—apps and HDMI inputs—without manufacturer-inserted ads or surveillance. While modifying consumer electronics isn't novel, recent AI advances have made these customizations accessible to non-experts, the report notes.
Two prominent solutions have emerged from this trend. A project called "dumbtv" has been tested successfully on Fire TV Edition televisions and Android or Google TV platforms across brands including Sony, TCL, Philips, Hisense, Xiaomi, and Shield, according to the report. Another tool, "cleanyourtv," promises to remove bloatware from any Android TV or Google TV over Wi-Fi and replace the launcher with one resembling Apple TV's interface. The cleanyourtv creator reported that thousands of users modified their own televisions within two days of the project's initial tweet, spanning brands like Xiaomi, TCL, Sony, Fire TV, LG, and even projectors. One user documented removing 25 Xiaomi packages and installing a new launcher, transforming a TV that displayed sponsored ads before accessing Netflix. Neither solution requires root access or prevents users from restoring factory settings if desired.
The dumbtv developer, Muzzammil Yasin Sabuwala, told TechCrunch he was driven by frustration with ads and the inability to access content directly. He built his solution using a combination of Deepseek V4.1 Flash, Claude Opus 5.5, and Claude Sonnet 5.5, and plans to maintain the GitHub repository while adding support for additional models over time. Another developer, Gathin T., explained that the cleanyourtv idea originated one afternoon when he grew tired of seeing ads on his parents' TV set. "I had Claude Code clean it up over Wi-Fi and build a simple home screen with just their apps on it," the developer wrote on a donations website linked from the project's homepage. In a separate viral post, Ryan Doyle claimed he simply sent Claude Code his TV listing and asked "Can you hack this?" The AI agent then guided him through removing ads and bloatware, speeding up the lagging interface, and customizing his screensaver, he stated.
The report warns that these hacks arrive at a moment when consumers have grown frustrated with forced advertising and devices that monitor viewing habits. Modern smart TVs ship with automatic content recognition technology, which identifies on-screen content using screenshots, audio clips, or digital fingerprinting. If these "dumb TV" modifications gain popularity among mainstream consumers, they could disrupt the smart TV advertising industry, which profits by selling viewing data to advertisers or using it to serve personalized ads on proprietary interfaces. Results so far have been mixed—some users found Claude wouldn't respond to simple "hack my TV" requests, requiring more detailed prompts. Others warned that AI agents can make errors, potentially disabling critical packages or causing malfunctions. One person reported bricking their Android TV using Claude, while another got stuck partway through modifying their Fire TV. For users hesitant to let AI fully modify their televisions, existing solutions for customizing Android-based smart TVs include home screen replacement apps like ATV Launcher, Projectivy Launcher, and FLauncher, the report notes. All current AI-driven solutions remain works in progress, with various users testing them across different platforms and proposing updates and fixes. The balance between convenient customization and potential system damage will likely shape whether this approach moves beyond early adopters into wider use. For now, the tools represent a test case for how accessible AI coding assistants can democratize technical modifications that once required specialized knowledge.