Developer Steven Troughton-Smith has been working with a developer named TheMudKip to add iOS application functionality to the Apple TV. “Using @TheMudkips MobileX window manager for iOS, and @chpwns MobileLaunchpad launcher to go with it, we now have multiple iOS apps running natively on AppleTV, without AirPlay.“

Rewriting the springboard also allowed for another neat, new feature: Side-by-side apps. This concept was demonstrated as early as WWDC 2011 on an iPad, but is much more powerful and important on a device like an Apple TV.

The tweaking is still in its early stages, but the concept of running applications was at least proven. In order to accomplish the task of running iOS applications on the Apple TV, the software that powers the app launcher, the iOS Springboard, had to be rewritten.

Source [9to5mac]