A growing number of people are using AI coding tools to remove adverts, bloatware, and tracking features from their smart TVs, according to a recent report by TechCrunch. Developers have shared guides that let AI agents clean up a TV’s software, speed up its menus, and replace its home screen.
TechCrunch says two of the best-known projects are ‘dumbtv’ and ‘cleanyourtv’. The second works over Wi-Fi on Android TV and Google TV sets and swaps the usual home screen for one that looks like Apple TV’s. Its creator, Gathin T., told supporters he started after getting fed up with the ads on his parents’ TV. He used Claude Code to tidy it up and shared the prompt online. He says a few thousand people copied the idea over the next two days, on TVs from brands including Xiaomi, TCL, Sony, Fire TV, and LG. According to the report, the setup does not need root access, and users can still restore factory settings.
The report adds that ‘dumbtv’ has been tested on Fire TV and on Android and Google TV models from Sony, TCL, Philips, Hisense, Xiaomi, and Shield. Its developer, Muzzammil Yasin Sabuwala, told TechCrunch he built it with a mix of AI models and plans to add more over time.
According to the project users, anyone can try this without using a ready-made project. One X user, Ryan Doyle, said he simply asked Claude Code, “Can you hack this?”, after sending it his TV’s listing. Another X user, Mihir Gupta, said he disabled 25 bloat apps and replaced a 192 MB launcher with a custom 83 MB version.
TechCrunch says the trend could hurt the smart TV advertising industry if it spreads, as the sector makes money from viewing data collected through technology that identifies what is on screen.
However, results have been mixed. The report adds that some users needed more detailed prompts, while others warned that AI can make mistakes. One person said they bricked their Android TV, and another got stuck partway through a Fire TV hack.
