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CleanYourTV: strip the ads off an Android TV with Claude Code

Debloat any Android TV or Google TV over Wi-Fi and swap the ad-filled home screen for a clean, Apple TV style launcher. No root, nothing uninstalled, one-line restore.

Wednesday, October 21, 2026 · 2 min read · by Cyrus Bitangcol

Stock Google TV homes now show a sponsored ad before you can reach Netflix. CleanYourTV fixes that with the same debug bridge Android phones use: no root, no cable, and every change can be undone.

How it works

  1. Back up the installed packages and settings.
  2. Disable the manufacturer's telemetry, ad services and preloaded junk with pm disable-user. Nothing is uninstalled.
  3. Install a 405 KB native launcher and make it the default Home.

Works on Android TV and Google TV (TCL, Sony, Xiaomi, Philips, Hisense, Chromecast, Shield and 140+ tested models). Samsung Tizen and LG webOS won't work. Fire TV gets the debloat half only.

Turn on debugging on the TV

Settings → Device Preferences → About → press OK on Build seven times. Go back → Developer options → turn on USB debugging, plus Network/ADB debugging if you see it. Keep the TV on.

The easy way: let Claude Code do it

Clone the repo so the assistant reuses its tools instead of writing them from scratch:

bash
git clone https://github.com/Gathin23/cleanyourtv
cd cleanyourtv
claude

Paste the contents of PROMPT.md, fill in your TV model, and follow along. Accept "Allow USB debugging?" on the TV when asked, then answer the checklist: which apps you use, which four go in the dock, and whether to keep the voice assistant, Chromecast and updates. It takes about fifteen minutes, and every step is checked with screenshots pulled from the TV.

The manual way

The tools need Python 3 and nothing else. Run from the repo root:

bash
python3 -m venv tools/venv && tools/venv/bin/pip install -r tools/requirements.txt
export TV_HOST=192.168.1.50                              # your TV's IP

tools/venv/bin/python -I tools/tv.py --probe            # model, Android version
tools/disable.sh examples/<your-tv>/debloat.txt         # apply a debloat list
launcher/build-and-install.sh                           # build the launcher, make it Home
tools/theme.sh themes/aurora                            # optional theme, --reset removes it

Pick the folder in examples/ closest to your model. Building the launcher needs JDK 17 and Android SDK platform 34; on macOS:

bash
brew install openjdk@17 android-commandlinetools
sdkmanager "platforms;android-34" "build-tools;34.0.0"

What you get

  • A pitch-black home with a dock of your four favourite apps
  • A top shelf naming the focused app over a glow taken from its artwork
  • Inputs, Wi-Fi and Settings buttons, a clock and a Clock screensaver
  • Themes that change colours, wallpaper, dock and columns without a rebuild

Restore in one line

disable.sh records the TV's state first, so the undo puts back exactly what was there:

bash
TV_HOST=192.168.1.50 tools/restore.sh examples/<your-tv>/debloat.txt

For Google TV, add com.google.android.apps.tv.launcherx as the second argument.

Before you start

  1. Keep the debloat list you applied: the restore needs it
  2. Some boxes cut USB power while debugging is on, so a USB drive or speaker may go dead
  3. Switch USB debugging off when you're done

Full troubleshooting lives in the repo's docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md.