AI Coding Tools Strip Ads and Trackers From Smart TVs

One project, dumbtv, says on its GitHub page that a TV should do what the buyer paid for: run the user's apps, accept HDMI inputs and nothing else. It removes ads, telemetry, experiments, Alexa and user-selected apps from a range of smart TVs, according to the report.

A second project, cleanyourtv, says it strips bloatware from any Android TV or Google TV over Wi-Fi and replaces the ad-filled home screen with a clean launcher that resembles Apple TV. It says the process requires no root access and no cable, uninstalls nothing, and can be restored with one line if the user changes their mind. Both projects claim to be fully reversible and say they do not touch the TV's root directory.

Some users are turning to AI agents instead of dedicated projects. Ryan Doyle posted on X that they found a listing for their TV and asked Claude Code, "can you hack this?" The AI agent then walked Doyle through steps to remove ads, bloatware and spyware and to speed up a laggy interface, TechRadar reported.

A more ambitious setup by a developer known as Cretezy aims to replace many parts of Android TV rather than only block advertising and tracking features. It includes an ad-free launch screen, a YouTube substitute, a media manager and a remote-control button remapper. Cretezy says an AI agent can set up the system and tailor it to a particular TV.

The projects arrive as consumers grow frustrated with streaming TV providers whose prices have risen and whose ads have become more intrusive, and with wider awareness of how large technology firms track and monetize their customers, according to TechRadar. The report said AI has changed the scale of such work by letting people build targeted solutions in hours rather than days or weeks, lowering the overhead for hacks and workarounds.