PipePipe: an open-source Android YouTube client

TL;DR: PipePipe is an Android app for browsing YouTube and other video services, licensed GPL-3.0 and sitting at 6,600 stars. Its GitHub topics name NewPipe as its lineage and SponsorBlock as a built-in feature, so the pitch is an ad-free front end that also lets you skip sponsor segments.

What it is

PipePipe describes itself in one line: an open-source Android app that lets you browse YouTube and other services freely. The repository points at pipepipe.dev, lists Shell as its primary language, was created on 2022-05-11, and took its most recent push on 2026-09-26.

That age matters. Most repositories trending on GitHub for the first time are a few weeks old. PipePipe has been taking commits for more than four years, which is a decent signal that whatever it does still works against the current state of the services it talks to.

The topic list is the fastest way to read the rest:

• android is the platform it targets
• newpipe names the open-source YouTube client it descends from
• youtube is the primary service
• mediaplayer marks it as a player app, not just a browser
• sponsorblock means SponsorBlock integration ships in the app, so sponsor segments are marked and skippable

SponsorBlock is the entry that stands out. It is a public database of sponsor segment timestamps contributed by viewers. Because the integration appears in the topic list rather than only in the prose, you can treat it as a shipped feature rather than a wishlist item.

The numbers

Field	Value
Stars	6,600
Forks	223
Open issues	153
Primary language	Shell
License	GPL-3.0
Created	2022-05-11
Last push	2026-09-26
Homepage	pipepipe.dev

A couple of those numbers say more than the star count alone. The fork count of 223 against 6,600 stars is a healthy ratio for an app people genuinely build on, which fits a GPL-3.0 project with a long history behind it. The 153 open issues is the one to watch. It is high in absolute terms, but a four-year-old Android app chasing a constantly shifting video extraction surface accumulates issue debt by nature.

How to try it

Start by inspecting what the maintainers are actually shipping before you download anything. GitHub’s API will give you the newest tag, when it went out, and the exact asset names:

gh api repos/InfinityLoop1308/PipePipe/releases/latest \
  --jq '.tag_name, .published_at, [.assets[].name]'

If you want the release artifact without leaving the terminal:

gh release download --repo InfinityLoop1308/PipePipe --pattern "*.apk"

To read the source instead of installing it, it is a normal Git repository:

git clone https://github.com/InfinityLoop1308/PipePipe.git
cd PipePipe

Shell as the primary language is an odd thing to see on an Android app, and worth understanding before you dig in. It usually means the build and release tooling, install scripts, or third-party store packaging account for most of the committed code, while the Java or Kotlin sources make up the app itself.

When to use it

PipePipe fits if you want a video client on Android that is not tied to an ad-supported storefront, and you are comfortable installing a release build or compiling from source. It also fits if you already follow NewPipe and would rather follow its successor forward than maintain your own fork.

It does not fit if you need an iPhone app, if installing an APK falls outside what your device policy allows, or if you are after a desktop or server install. The topic list points squarely at Android.

Source and Accuracy Notes

• Project page: https://github.com/InfinityLoop1308/PipePipe
• Homepage: https://pipepipe.dev
• Source repository: InfinityLoop1308/PipePipe (verified via GitHub API html_url)
• License: GPL-3.0 (verified via GitHub API license.spdx_id)
• Stars at time of writing: 6,600