SeekingAlpha points to some Automator actions (New Video Capture, New Audio Capture) first posted by TechRestore as evidence of possible future DVR capabilities in the Apple TV. This conclusion is wrong.
Looking back, TechRestore's original article is a list of what files can be found on the Apple TV hard drive. The Apple TV contains a stripped version of Mac OS X 10.4.7. Amongst other things, it includes Quicktime functionality to play back audio and video.
Every Quicktime install comes with Automator actions, including:
New Audio Capture
New Video Capture
Pause Capture
Start Capture
Stop Capture
These Automator actions can be found in any Mac OS X 10.4.x install under /System/Library/Automator and have no unique relationship with Apple TV.