Two shared projects capture the approach. "Dumbtv", built by Muzammil Yasin Sabuwala, has been tested end-to-end on a Fire TV Edition set and on Android and Google TV models from Sony, TCL, Philips, Hisense, Xiaomi and Shield; users simply point their AI agent at its GitHub repository. "Cleanyourtv", from developer Gathin T., promises to strip bloatware from any Android TV or Google TV over Wi-Fi and replace the launcher with one resembling Apple TV. It began when Gathin got tired of ads on his parents' TV, which showed a sponsored ad before Netflix could even open; he says a few thousand people replicated the hack within two days.

Cleanyourtv does not require gaining root access to the TV, and it does not make it impossible to return to the factory default state if desired; the report does not say the same of dumbtv. Hacking consumer electronics for more control is hardly a new idea, but the report notes that recent advances in AI have made such efforts much more accessible to anyone.

The stakes go beyond annoyance. Modern smart TVs use Automatic Content Recognition, or ACR, which identifies what is playing via screenshots, audio clips or digital fingerprinting, feeding an ad industry built on selling viewing data. If these hacks spread beyond enthusiasts, they could disrupt that business model.

Caution is warranted, though. These are works in progress, and users have reported that AI agents can make mistakes, potentially disabling important packages or breaking the TV; one person reportedly bricked their Android TV. Some also found that a simple "hack my TV" prompt was not enough and needed more detailed instructions.