For too many families, the conversation about giving a loved one with disabilities their first phone or smartwatch has never felt like a milestone. It feels like a trap. On one side is the fear of all the things that can go wrong online—strangers, scams, bullying, endless rabbit holes of content that a young person isn’t ready to process. On the other side is the quiet guilt of keeping someone isolated from the very tools that help them connect with friends, build life skills, and take part in the world. It’s a painful either/or, and for years, caregivers and state programs have had to choose: lock the device down completely, or hand over full access and hope for the best. Bark Technologies, a company that builds customizable safety tools for families and disability programs, says that framing is outdated and unfair. There is another way—one where safety and independence are not enemies, but partners that grow together. That idea has just taken a significant step forward in Wisconsin, where Bark Phone and Bark Watch are now approved through the state’s IRIS program for adults with disabilities, building on the company’s earlier approval through Wisconsin’s Children’s Long-Term Support (CLTS) Waiver Program. For the first time, many families in Wisconsin can use Medicaid waiver funds to get devices that adapt with the person using them, from childhood all the way into adulthood.
What makes Bark’s approach different is what the company calls “dynamic guardrails.” Instead of a one-size-fits-all block list or a permanent digital lockdown, dynamic guardrails are safety settings that change as a person’s abilities, confidence, and goals evolve. A young person might start with limited contacts, strict screen-time windows, and close monitoring. Over time, as they show they can handle more responsibility, the guardrails can loosen slightly—allowing new apps, later bedtimes, or more independent communication—without ever disappearing entirely. This is not about tracking every move forever, and it’s not about pretending the risks don’t exist. It’s about creating a scaffold for independence, one that can be adjusted step by step. “Independence doesn’t begin or end at a certain age,” said Christian Brucculeri, chief community officer at Bark. “When we announced Bark’s availability through Wisconsin’s CLTS program earlier this year, it was an important step toward making safer technology more accessible to Wisconsin children with disabilities. Expanding access through IRIS means that support doesn’t have to stop when someone becomes an adult. Technology should continue to safely support independence, connection and community participation at every age and stage of life.” That continuity matters deeply. Many programs treat childhood and adulthood as completely separate worlds, with different rules and different supports. But people don’t change overnight when they turn eighteen. Their need for safety, guidance, and growing autonomy continues. By making the same adaptive tools available through both children’s and adults’ waiver programs, Wisconsin is recognizing that assistive technology should be part of a lifelong continuum, not a stopgap that vanishes at the worst possible moment.
To understand why this matters, it helps to look at what happens when the balance between safety and access is missing. Without technology, people with disabilities can lose out on essential opportunities to build social skills, practice decision-making, and take part in their own communities. A phone isn’t just a phone—it’s how you text a friend after school, how you look up a bus schedule, how you find a new hobby, how you feel a little less alone on a hard day. But when caregivers have no good way to manage the risks, the simplest solution is often to keep the device away entirely. That might be safer in a narrow sense, but it comes at a real cost: isolation, frustration, and fewer chances to grow. Bark argues that two common assumptions have created this problem. The first is the idea that everyone should get the same level of digital access, regardless of their needs or experience. The second is the belief that digital safety means keeping people offline. Neither assumption reflects how people actually develop. A teenager just starting to use social media, an adult with an intellectual disability living semi-independently, and a child with autism who communicates best through text do not need the same rules or the same tools. Treating safety and independence as opposing goals—rather than as two sides of the same coin—can leave people with disabilities cut off from the very resources that help them participate in the world. The goal isn’t to give everyone identical access; it’s to give everyone the right level of access for where they are right now, with the ability to grow.
The early results in Wisconsin suggest this approach is already making a real difference. In an ongoing customer satisfaction survey of Wisconsin families who purchased Bark devices using Medicaid waiver funds, 91% reported positive changes within three to six months. Those changes included more independence, fewer behavioral challenges, stronger social connections, and a better understanding of social cues online. But numbers only tell part of the story. Kate Schmitz, a CLTS support and service coordinator, described the experience of a young participant who began using a Bark Phone. “Since receiving the Bark Phone, he has been using it daily, and the family has noticed meaningful positive changes,” she said. “Previously, he showed little to no interest in services or activities that were suggested. After taekwondo was mentioned, he independently used his Bark Phone to look up nearby martial arts studios and is now officially starting classes this week. The family has also reported that his overall mental health has improved because he is able to have more alone time and independence while they still have the ability to monitor his location and safety.” This is a small example, but it captures something profound. With the right safeguards in place, a phone stops being a source of worry and becomes a gateway to autonomy. That young man didn’t just get a device—he got the chance to pursue an interest on his own terms, to feel trusted, and to experience the pride that comes from doing something independently. His family, meanwhile, didn’t have to stop worrying entirely. They just traded constant fear for informed peace of mind, knowing they could still see where he was and who he was talking to while giving him room to breathe.
Bark is also using this moment to push for broader change across the technology industry. The company argues that tech companies need to build customizable safeguards that can be shaped around each person’s needs and life goals, rather than offering only rigid parental controls that treat every user the same. Bark’s own devices illustrate what this can look like in practice. The Bark Phone is a customizable smartphone with contact and app management, content monitoring, screen-time schedules, and location tools. The Bark Watch is a simpler option focused on communication safety and location tracking, with no internet browser, social media, or games—a good fit for people who need connection and safety without the distractions and dangers of a full smartphone. Devices like these can be included in individualized support and service plans when they fit a participant’s assessed needs and goals, subject to applicable program requirements and authorization. Under CLTS, for example, a service coordinator may recommend including a device when it can support outcomes identified in the plan. Under IRIS, participants work with an IRIS consultant to create a plan and choose the providers and supports that fit their goals. This is not about forcing any particular device on anyone. It’s about giving families and care teams the option to include adaptive technology as a legitimate part of a support plan, the same way they might include speech therapy or transportation assistance. As people move from childhood into adulthood, their technology should be able to grow with them. Expanding access to assistive technology across different programs and age groups can help reduce gaps in support during the often-jarring transition from pediatric to adult services, a time when many families suddenly lose access to therapies, supports, and funding they had come to rely on.
Right now, in Wisconsin, Bark Phone and Bark Watch are available as assistive technology options through both the CLTS and IRIS programs, subject to individual eligibility, assessed needs, and applicable program requirements. That means families and their support teams can consider these devices as part of the individualized service planning process, and if the device is approved, Medicaid waiver funds can help cover it. More information about Bark’s participation in Wisconsin Medicaid waiver programs is available at www.bark.us/learn/medicaid. But Bark’s vision extends far beyond one state. As Medicaid programs, state agencies, treatment providers, and community organizations across the country think harder about how technology fits into long-term care supports, Bark believes adaptable technology should be treated as a fundamental right and an important tool for reaching life goals—not as a liability to be managed. Through Bark Community Programs, the company works with these organizations to make safer, customizable technology available to people with disabilities, while eligibility and coverage decisions remain with each program and each individual’s care team. Bark Technologies is best known as a leader in online safety for kids and families, helping protect more than 7.5 million children at home and in over 3,600 schools and districts across the U.S. Its AI-powered tools flag potential issues such as cyberbullying, online predators, and threats of violence, giving caregivers greater visibility while supporting more independence. Bark’s products include the Bark app, Bark Phone, Bark Watch, Bark Home, and Bark Sync. But at the heart of the company’s work is a simple idea: people with disabilities deserve the same chance as anyone else to explore, connect, make mistakes in a safe environment, and prove what they’re capable of. Independence doesn’t begin or end at a certain age, and safety shouldn’t be a wall that keeps people from living full lives. It should be a guardrail—flexible, supportive, and always ready to move a little further out as a person grows into it.