A report on 60 Minutes discusses some of the tools children and adults with autism can use.
I personally think this is a great idea, as I am one of those AS people who can communicate best through such applications, and it is a central point of the story that spectrum children who are nonverbal can use their iPads or other tablets to understand a student's true capability. However, another message here is that the artificial intelligence of such processors allows us greater control over our environments, and lets us, well, do our thing. Having that control can break us from our shells, especially when we become withdrawn in our individual awkwardness. I guess you could say it is an outlet.
It's worth checking out if you haven't seen it.
