Developer uses Claude to debloat his smart TV
Mert Cobanov gave Anthropic's Claude system access to strip bloatware from his Android TV and said the four-year-old set now runs better than when it was new.
Developer Mert Cobanov gave Claude full system access to his Android TV with instructions to remove bloatware. He said on X that his four-year-old set now runs "smoother than when it was new," and published the full workflow online, encouraging others to try it.
https://x.com/mertcobanov/status/2092980660386378154
Claude disabled unused apps without uninstalling them, reduced animation speeds for faster responsiveness, and replaced Google TV's ad-heavy home screen with FLauncher, a free open-source launcher, according to Engadget's account of the project. The changes did not require rooting the device, Engadget reported.
Engadget cautioned that Cobanov's result does not mean the approach is safe to repeat. AI agents are prone to mistakes, the outlet said, and giving one debugging access to a TV's system could disable critical components, brick the device or block future software updates.
Most of what Claude did is also possible, and safer, to do by hand, Engadget noted. Alternatives include downloading FLauncher directly, using other Play Store apps that manage which packages run, and adjusting animation and autoplay settings in Android TV's developer options.