SEATTLE, March 20, 2026 -- Parents want their kids to be reachable. They also know that handing a third-grader a smartphone opens the door to group chats, social media, and hours of unsupervised screen time. ClearBeam Networks built a feature that solves the first problem without creating the second.
Kid Safe Numbers, part of the company's HomeStation Plus home phone service, gives children their own phone number on a real phone in the house. Parents set an approved contact list. The child can call grandma, their best friend, or 911. Unapproved callers are blocked silently. No screen, no apps, no browser, but also no isolation. The kid stays connected to the people who matter.
"This is not about being against technology," said Tim Semakula, founder and CEO of ClearBeam Networks. "Smartphones are great. But there is a window in a kid's life where they need to be reachable without needing the entire internet in their pocket. Kid Safe Numbers fill that gap."
The conversation around children and smartphones has moved from opinion to policy. U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy issued a formal advisory on social media and youth mental health. Schools in Florida, Indiana, Virginia, and dozens of other states have enacted or proposed phone restrictions during school hours. The Wait Until 8th pledge, which asks families to delay smartphone ownership, has been signed by families in all 50 states.
These families are not anti-technology. They are making a timing decision. And they need a bridge: a way for their child to make and receive phone calls before they are ready for a smartphone.
Kid Safe Numbers run on HomeStation Plus ($25/mo, all taxes included, no contract):
No app to install. No device to charge or lose. The phone lives in the house.
GPS watches and stripped-down smartphones solve a portability problem. Kid Safe Numbers solve a home connectivity problem. They are complementary, not competing.
"A lot of parents use a watch or a basic phone for when their kid is out," Semakula said. "Kid Safe Numbers are for when they are home. The phone is in the kitchen. Their friend calls after school. Grandma calls on Saturday morning. It is their number, their calls, on a phone the whole family shares."
HomeStation Plus also includes elder wellness check-ins, Quiet Hours that silence the phone during dinner and bedtime, call screening, and a Home Assistant that answers when nobody is home. Kid Safe Numbers can also be added to the base HomeStation plan ($15/mo) for $8/mo.
HomeStation is available in all 50 states. Equipment ships pre-configured and free. No contract required. Orders can be placed at order.myclearbeam.net.
ClearBeam Networks is an independently owned, queer-founded telecommunications carrier headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Founded by Tim Semakula and Joe Gregory, ClearBeam builds and operates its own nationwide voice network spanning 12 points of presence. The phone your house has been missing.