Clarifai, Inc.

Clarifai, Inc., a McLean, Virginia–based small business specializing in AI-powered computer vision and machine learning, operates exclusively as a prime contractor on Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase II programs with the Air Force Research Laboratory, holding total small business set-aside designation across its recent federal contract portfolio.

Clarifai's capability footprint centers on visual inspection systems, full-motion video analysis, and natural language processing for defense applications. Representative work includes a $1.15 million SBIR Phase II contract awarded in February 2023 through October 2024 for AI-enabled visual inspection of aircraft exteriors; a $749,997 SBIR Phase II contract running January 2022 through August 2023 for a deep learning platform for real-world natural language processing and search; a $226,611 SBIR Phase II contract completed September 2024 for an AI-enabled visual inspection system for fighter jet engines; and a $1.24 million SBIR Phase II purchase order awarded March 2026 (performance through December 2027) to enhance imagery exploitation intelligence through AI augmentation. The source also references four additional prior SBIR and STTR Phase II contracts with the Air Force Research Laboratory totaling approximately $2.14 million, addressing applications such as aircraft maintenance and facial recognition capabilities.

Customer concentration is extreme: the Air Force Research Laboratory accounts for 100% of the vendor's award count (six of seven awards, $3.5 million combined potential value). The single outlier is a $140,928 SBIR Phase I contract awarded August 2025 by the Department of Defense's Washington Headquarters Service to investigate generative AI applications for security classification determinations, with completion scheduled February 2026.

Activity is episodic rather than sustained — one award in 2020, one in 2022, two in 2023, two in 2025, and one in 2026 — with combined obligated value of $3.6 million across all seven awards. One award (the $1.24 million Phase II imagery exploitation contract) extends into the recompete window beyond twenty-four months; the remainder either completed or will complete by early 2027. Clarifai operates with no subcontractor footprint and no presence on government-wide vehicles or blanket purchase agreements; all work flows through individual firm fixed-price purchase orders and definitive SBIR/STTR contracts. The vendor competes entirely within the small business set-aside universe, with no full-and-open competition.