Voice-Control TV Netflix with Grok Bot: A Reversible TV Remote MCP Setup

Smart TV on same Wi-Fi → reverse local API with Claude Code + Opus 5.5 → build 3-tool MCP remote → plug into Grok Bot → voice command execution

Who

Users with smart-home experience who want voice control for their TV

You get

Say "Hey Grok, open Netflix" to launch Netflix and navigate by voice

You need

Opus 5.5 · Cloudflare Tunnel

Steps

1. Same Network

   Connect your smart TV and laptop to the same Wi-Fi network.

2. Prepare Claude Code

   Open Claude Code and select the Opus 5.5 model. Take a photo of your TV's Settings → About screen and have it ready to paste along with the prompt.

   Execution prompt · Source text。Claude Code chat input, send together with the TV Settings → About photo

   Copy prompt

   This is my own smart TV, my own home Wi-Fi and my own laptop.
   
   I want to control my TV by voice through Grok Bot: I say "Hey Grok, open Netflix" and the TV opens the Netflix home screen and browses it on command ("go right", "scroll down", "open this one").
   
   I'll press Allow on the TV myself and approve every connection.
   
   I authorize you to set up the laptop side, talk to the TV through its official local remote-control API, install what's needed and make the changes below. Every change must be reversible.
   
   I've attached a photo of the TV's Settings → About screen.
   
   Done means: a small local "TV remote" service runs on this laptop with exactly three tools (open_netflix, press_key, status), Grok Bot can call it, and one voice command opens Netflix on my TV while I watch each step.
   
   When a step doesn't need me, keep going.
   
   → First, identify my TV from the photo and explain in 5 lines how it can be controlled on my network: which OS it runs (Tizen, webOS or Google TV), which local API it exposes, how pairing works, how apps get launched by ID, and how remote key presses are sent. 
   
   If the photo shows a TV without network remote control, tell me plainly, and stop. Never root, flash, sideload or put the TV in developer mode.
   
   → Install only the official or most widely used library for my TV from official sources (PyPI, Homebrew or official GitHub releases): samsungtvws for Samsung, the SSAP/websocket API for LG webOS, adb for Google TV. Find the TV's IP on my network. 
   
   If the connection is blocked, tell me exactly which TV setting to check. On macOS, "No route to host" usually means the terminal needs Local Network access: allow it and retry.
   
   → Before changing anything, save the TV's current app and input, every setting you'll touch, and the undo commands.
   
   → Pair with the TV. The first time, wait for me to press Allow on the screen. Save the pairing token to a local file with owner-only permissions.
   
   → Build tvremote: a tiny MCP server with exactly three tools.
   
   open_netflix: launches the Netflix app by its official app ID and waits for the home screen.
   
   press_key: accepts only UP, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, ENTER, BACK, HOME, with a short pause between presses.
   status: returns what's on the TV right now.
   No shell access, no other apps, no free-form commands.
   
   → Connect tvremote to Grok Bot as a custom plugin through a Cloudflare Tunnel protected by a secret token. Write a short instruction for the bot: "Open Netflix when I ask, navigate only with press_key, describe what's on screen after each step." 
   
   If my Grok Bot plan can't use custom plugins, tell me plainly and fall back to a local wake phrase listener on the laptop instead.
   
   → Check the TV's state before every action and show me what you're about to send.
   
   → If Netflix shows "Who's watching?", a sign-in screen or any payment or plan prompt, stop and let me handle it. Never sign in, never pick a profile for me, never change the plan, never buy or rent anything.
   
   → Never touch the TV's firmware, accounts, network settings, parental controls, smart home automations or any other device on my network.
   
   → Add a live monitor that prints each command with a timestamp, plus a one-line health check: TV paired, tvremote up, tunnel up, Grok connected.
   
   → End with a cheat sheet (start, stop, re-pair the TV, revoke the plugin token) and the undo commands.
   
   Never expose anything except those three tools to the internet, never type my passwords or sign in for me, never install apps from pirate sites.

3. Identify TV API

   Opus 5.5 identifies the TV OS (Tizen / webOS / Google TV) from the photo, explains the local remote-control API, pairing method, app launch by ID, and key-press mechanism. If the TV lacks network remote control, it will say so plainly and stop.

4. Build tvremote Service

   Install the appropriate official library (Samsung: samsungtvws; LG: SSAP/websocket; Google TV: adb), find the TV IP, pair and save the token. Build an MCP server with exactly three tools: open_netflix, press_key (UP/DOWN/LEFT/RIGHT/ENTER/BACK/HOME only), status.

5. Connect to Grok Bot

   Expose tvremote to Grok Bot as a custom plugin through a Cloudflare Tunnel protected by a secret token. Write a short bot instruction: open Netflix on request, navigate only with press_key, describe screen after each step. If Grok Bot plan lacks custom plugins, fall back to a local wake-phrase listener.

6. Authorize on TV

   Press Allow on the TV screen during first-time pairing. This is the last time you need the physical remote.

7. Voice Control

   Say "Hey Grok, open Netflix" and watch the TV launch Netflix and browse by voice commands.

The core of this case is the reproducible source prompt, fully included in Step 2's prompts. This field serves as a setup/reading assistant starter: you are configuring a local TV remote MCP service, exposing it to Grok Bot via Cloudflare Tunnel for voice-controlled Netflix. Prerequisites include Samsung/LG/Google TV, same Wi-Fi, Claude Code + Opus 5.5, and Grok Bot custom plugin permission. All changes must be reversible; first-time pairing requires manual Allow on the TV.