# NewPipe recon — 2026-05-23

Clone: `/root/build/newpipe-recon/` (shallow clone of upstream master 94005cf).

## TL;DR

NewPipe is **mid-migration to Kotlin Multiplatform + Compose Multiplatform**, but
the new app is at literal day-zero. Of 4 modules, only `:app` (the legacy
Android app) actually works. `:shared` has 892 LOC of scaffolding but zero
screens. `:desktopApp` is an 18-line stub. `:iosApp` has 0 lines of Kotlin.

The "fork the legacy app and modernize it" angle is dead — they're modernizing.
The actual opening is: **pick up the abandoned-looking KMP scaffold and execute
the next year of work in a day's worth of vertical-slice ambition.** Bake in
SponsorBlock + RYD as first-class while we're at it.

## Module breakdown

| Module | LOC | Kt files | Java files | Status |
|---|---:|---:|---:|---|
| `:app` (legacy `NEWPIPE_APPLICATION_ID_OLD`) | 82,427 | 173 | 295 | What users run as v0.28.6 |
| `:shared` (KMP, `NEWPIPE_APPLICATION_ID_NEW`) | 892 | 21 | 0 | **Hello-world stage, zero screens** |
| `:desktopApp` | 18 | 1 | 0 | `Main.kt` stub only |
| `:iosApp` | 0 | 0 | 0 | Xcode shell only |

### `:shared` current state

`shared/src/commonMain/kotlin/net/newpipe/app/` contains:

- `App.kt` — `@Composable fun App(...)` that sets up Koin + `AppTheme {}` with
  an **empty body**. The KMP app literally renders nothing.
- `Constants.kt` — empty file-level constants.
- `navigation/NavDisplay.kt` — wraps androidx-nav3's `NavDisplay`, but
  `entryProvider { }` block is empty. **No screens registered.**
- `navigation/Screen.kt` — sealed interface with **zero subclasses**.
- `di/KoinApp.kt` — bare `@KoinApplication object KoinApp` with no modules.
- `composable/TopAppBar.kt` — basic top bar.
- `theme/` — Color, ServiceTheme, Theme. Solid Material 3 scaffolding.
- `preview/ThemePreviewProvider.kt` — Compose preview helper.
- `di/settings/SettingsModule.kt` — multiplatform settings DI (separate
  `commonMain` interface + `androidMain`/`jvmMain`/`iosMain` impls).

That's it. The entire new app is theme + navigation primitive + Koin stub.

### `:shared/androidMain`

- `ComposeActivity.kt` — Android entry that hosts the Compose UI.
- `Constants.kt` — Android-specific constants.
- `extensions/Context.kt` — extension utilities.

## Stack (already chosen by NewPipe, modern as of 2026)

| Layer | Pick | Version | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Language | Kotlin | 2.3.21 | Bleeding edge |
| UI | Jetpack Compose + Compose Multiplatform | 1.11.1 | Material3 1.11.0-alpha07 |
| Build | AGP | 9.2.1 | Latest |
| Nav | androidx-navigation3 | 1.1.1 | Type-safe, KMP-friendly |
| DI | Koin | 4.2.1 | Annotation-driven via koin-plugin |
| Async | kotlinx.coroutines | 1.11.0 | Plus kotlinx-coroutines-rx3 bridge to legacy |
| Serialization | kotlinx.serialization | 1.11.0 | JSON, parcelable replacement |
| Image loading | Coil 3 | 3.4.0 | KMP-native via coil-network-okhttp |
| HTTP | OkHttp | 5.3.2 | Android, used by extractor |
| DB | Room | 2.8.4 | Android-only, KMP-incompatible (legacy app) |
| Player | ExoPlayer 2.19.1 | — | **Stale.** Should be `androidx.media3` ≥ 1.4 |
| Crash | ACRA | 5.13.1 | Send-to-self crash reporter |
| Leak detection | LeakCanary | 2.14 | Debug builds only |

## Critical dependency: `NewPipeExtractor`

- `teamnewpipe-newpipe-extractor = "v0.26.2"` pulled from JitPack
- **JVM-only.** Uses Jsoup + nanojson + Java HTTP.
- Cannot live in `commonMain` for KMP. Lives in `:app` and would need
  `androidMain` / `jvmMain` source sets in `:shared`.
- **This is why their KMP migration is slow** — porting the extractor to KMP
  is the actual big yak. They haven't started it.

For our fork: same constraint applies. Android-only target for day-1; KMP
extractor port is a separate (multi-week) project.

## What's actively being deprecated

NewPipe's own codebase has TODOs and migrations in flight:
- RxJava 3 → coroutines (bridges via `kotlinx-coroutines-rx3` show partial)
- ExoPlayer 2 → Media3 (still on legacy)
- Fragment + ViewBinding → Compose (the LeakScope findings live in this layer)
- Material 1 → Material 3 (mid-migration; `material = "1.11.0" # TODO: update`)
- KSP2 incompatibility flagged on `statesaver`
- Apache commons in `app/src/main/java/org/apache/commons/` — vendored, would
  go away in KMP world

## Where to hook SponsorBlock + Return YouTube Dislike

For a from-scratch new app:

- **SponsorBlock**: ExoPlayer/Media3 player listener that consumes a list of
  segments fetched at video resolution time. Skip via `player.seekTo()` on
  `onPositionDiscontinuity`/period-update callbacks. API: SHA-256 prefix
  lookup at `sponsor.ajay.app/api/skipSegments/<prefix>`.
- **Return YouTube Dislike**: HTTP GET to
  `returnyoutubedislike.com/votes?videoId=<id>`. Render in video detail screen
  next to the like count. No player integration needed.

Both clients can live in `:shared/commonMain` using **Ktor client** (KMP HTTP).
That makes them iOS/desktop-ready once an extractor port exists.

## Existing forks doing the same thing

Surfaced from NewPipe issue thread #13512:
- **PipePipe** — fork with SponsorBlock + RYD. Active.
- **Tubular** — fork with SponsorBlock + RYD. Active.
- **YouPipe** — fork with extra features.
- **SkyTube** — separate Android YouTube app, not NewPipe-based.

So this isn't novel territory. We're doing it for the build experience
(element-x energy), not to fill a market gap.

## Differentiators we could pursue

If we want to be more than "another fork":

1. **Compose-native from day 1** (vs. PipePipe/Tubular which are still on
   Fragment+XML legacy). Smaller, faster, easier to maintain.
2. **Media3 ExoPlayer** (vs. NewPipe's legacy ExoPlayer 2).
3. **Ktor-based clients** for SB/RYD in `commonMain` — KMP-ready for the day
   someone ports the extractor.
4. **First-class settings sync** via our existing Sulkta auth (Authentik OIDC)
   for cross-device subscriptions/history. None of the existing forks do this.
5. **Sulkta-Coop signing cert** — joins the rest of our app family with
   consistent signature.