CleanYourTV: Clear the Junk Off Your Android TV with Claude Code
The repo and the steps for clearing the sponsored rows and preloaded junk off an Android TV or Google TV over wifi, in about fifteen minutes.
Back to all free guidesSo in the reel I showed CleanYourTV, the GitHub repo that Claude Code uses to clean up an Android TV or Google TV. Here's what it does, which TVs it runs on, what you need and every step. The repo says it takes about fifteen minutes.
What it does
- It works over wifi. No cable and no root. Claude finds the TV on your network and talks to it with standard Android tooling.
- It backs up first. The list of installed apps and settings gets saved before anything changes.
- It asks before touching anything you use. The junk differs by brand, so Claude finds what's on your TV and checks with you.
- It switches things off and deletes nothing. The manufacturer's tracking, ad services, sponsored rows and preloaded junk get disabled, and nothing is uninstalled.
- You get a new home screen. A pitch-black Apple TV style home with your favourite apps in a dock.
- One line puts it back. The restore script switches every package back on and returns your old home screen.
It's free and MIT licensed, made by Gathin. It has over 45,000 stars on GitHub, and the repo has lists for over 350 TV models.
Which TVs it runs on
It's for Android TV and Google TV sets. Samsung, LG, Roku, Vizio and Hisense VIDAA can't run it, but the maker's not-android page shows you how to turn their tracking off with the remote.
Most Fire TVs get the debloat only, and the 2015 Fire TV Box refuses even that.
Before you start
You'll need a computer on the same wifi as the TV, with:
- Claude Code, or another coding assistant with shell access.
- Python 3.
- A JDK from 17 through 22.
- Android SDK platform 34, with build-tools 34. Claude builds the new home screen on your computer, so this one matters.
Step 1: on the TV
Go to this path with the remote:
Settings → Device Preferences → About → press OK on Build seven times → back → Developer options → USB debugging onIf you see a Network or ADB debugging toggle, turn that on too. Then keep the TV on.
Step 2: on your computer
Clone the repo and open the folder in Claude Code. Cloning matters, because Claude reuses the repo's own scripts, and that's where the backup and the restore record live.
git clone https://github.com/Gathin23/cleanyourtv
cd cleanyourtv
claudeThen paste in PROMPT.md from the repo and fill in your TV model.
Step 3: follow along
Accept "Allow USB debugging?" on the TV. Then answer Claude's checklist:
- Which apps you use
- The dock size and the app order
- Whether to keep the voice assistant, Chromecast and updates
Step 4: close it back up
This bit's easy to skip, so don't. Network debugging is open on the TV until you shut it, so when you're done:
- Go back into Developer options.
- Turn USB debugging and Network/ADB debugging off.
- Revoke the USB debugging authorisations.
- Reboot the TV.
If you change your mind
Keep the list Claude applied. One line from the repo puts the TV back the way it was, swapping in your TV's address and list:
TV_HOST=192.168.1.50 tools/restore.sh examples/<your tv>/debloat.txtOn a Google TV, add com.google.android.apps.tv.launcherx to the end of that line. The new launcher stays installed, and you can remove it from the TV's Settings → Apps.
If an update brings the junk back
A firmware update installs over the cleaned-up system, so the listed apps can come back. Open debugging again as in step 1, then run the repo's check with your TV's list. It shows what came back, and --fix switches it off again.
TV_HOST=192.168.1.50 tools/venv/bin/python -I tools/check.py examples/<your tv>/debloat.txt --fixTake off the --fix if you only want to see what's changed.