tvpilot

tvpilot controls a paired Android TV or Google TV: it lists the paired device, sends remote key events, launches apps and intents, resolves a spoken-style title to the right streaming provider and plays it, and reads back what is on the screen. One binary serves a command-line interface and a stdio MCP server.

Calls go through the TVWizard relay, which forwards them over a WebSocket to the bridge app running on the TV, so no same-network, VPN, or port-forwarding setup is needed. Pairing is done once in the bridge app: it shows a code, you claim it, and you receive a bearer token for your TV.

Configuration

Two environment variables configure the tool:

• TVWIZARD_TOKEN (required) — the bearer token issued when you paired your TV. Without it every call fails with an error naming the variable; there are no unauthenticated or fake results.

• TVWIZARD_MCP_URL (optional) — the relay endpoint. It defaults to https://tv.djwizard.ai/api/mcp. Note: the public TVWizard documentation describes the relay architecture and its bearer auth but does not publish the relay's raw HTTP path, so this default endpoint is a documented reconstruction; override it if the relay publishes a different path.

Related MCP server: Smart Appliance MCP

Install

npx @reneturcios/tvpilot devices

Or run the container image:

docker run -i ghcr.io/cloudcorprecords/tvpilot

The container defaults to the MCP server (see below). Pass CLI arguments to use it as a CLI instead.

CLI

tvpilot devices
tvpilot key POWER
tvpilot launch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw --package com.google.android.youtube.tv
tvpilot apps
tvpilot play Stranger Things --country US --season 2 --episode 3 --year 2016 --provider netflix
tvpilot observe

tvpilot --version

Commands print the relay's JSON payload. Exit codes: 0 on success, 1 when a call fails (including a missing token or an upstream relay error), 2 for usage errors.

Keys for tvpilot key are POWER, HOME, UP, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, OK, BACK, VOL_UP, and VOL_DOWN. Providers for --provider are netflix, disney_plus, prime_video, max, hulu, apple_tv_plus, paramount_plus, peacock, fubo_tv, youtube, and stremio.

tvpilot observe needs the Android AccessibilityService granted to the bridge app. The first call without it returns an accessibility_not_granted error explaining that a setup prompt was posted on the TV; tap it, then retry.

MCP server

One bin serves both faces. The mcp subcommand starts a stdio MCP server:

npx -y @reneturcios/tvpilot mcp

MCP client configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "tvpilot": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@reneturcios/tvpilot", "mcp"],
      "env": { "TVWIZARD_TOKEN": "<your token>" }
    }
  }
}

Tools

Upstream failures — a title that cannot be found, no provider for the title in the chosen country, a relay with its resolver disabled, or accessibility not yet granted — are returned as error results carrying the relay's own message.

Development

npm install
npm run build   # tsc -> dist/
npm test        # node test runner over test/*.test.ts, no network (fake fetch fixtures)
npm run dev     # run the CLI from source via tsx

License

MIT — see LICENSE.