Obstat

Open a protected app and Obstat steps in with "Not yet." The dock shows exactly what earns access and for how long.
Home in light and dark: what is protected, until when, today's numbers, and the current rules.
The first emergency bypass each day is free; subsequent bypasses cost progressively more, resetting at midnight.
Emergency access is a five-second hold on a single disc, then device authentication. Releasing early cancels.
The push-up challenge counts repetitions with on-device pose tracking. No camera frame is ever stored or sent.
The cognitive tier: arithmetic that gets harder with each unlock of the day.
You design the daily ladder: a wait that grows, then math, then movement. Everything resets at local midnight.
Rule details and Settings: activation, progression, and access in plain words, with no analytics or tracking anywhere.
Blocker screen, 1179 × 2556, no device frame.
App icon, 1024 × 1024, uncropped.

Obstat was motivated by a straightforward issue: screen-time restrictions are simple to disregard. Most blockers either stop the user or provide a simple "extend" button when a timer expires. Our goal was to develop a system that forces people to think carefully about whether or not they truly want to spend more time on screens.

Users can set personalised limitations for distracting apps with Obstat. When the limit is reached, users can unlock more time by moving, exercising, or answering a quick cognitive test. By using a ladder system for extra time, such as +5, +10, or +15 minutes, users can consciously acquire more screen time.

Customisable app timers, unlock challenges, adjustable time increments, and a straightforward productivity-focused experience are the foundation upon which we built Obstat. Finding the ideal balance between friction and usefulness was the most difficult task; the difficulty must be significant enough to prevent thoughtless usage without being annoying.

Building Obstat taught us that total technological restriction is not always necessary for digital wellbeing. An automatic habit can occasionally be transformed into a conscious decision with just a brief period of deliberate conflict.

Obstat demands you earn your way back in addition to blocking distractions.