Intellisense Systems Inc.

Intellisense Systems Inc., a Torrance, California-based small business manufacturer and R&D contractor specializing in advanced sensing, display, and data analysis technologies, operates as a prime contractor on the vast majority of federal awards (97% of recent awards) under total small business set-asides, with concentrated engagement in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs across defense and civilian agencies. The company has received over 535 federal awards totaling $7.67 billion in combined potential value since 2014, with $330.3 million obligated to date, establishing itself as a prolific innovator in infrared sensors, weather observation systems, machine learning algorithms, optical systems, and specialized display technologies for military and federal civilian applications.

Intellisense's customer base is heavily concentrated within the Department of the Navy's Naval Air Warfare Center, which accounts for 81 awards and $7.2 billion in combined potential value—a massive outlier reflecting large indefinite-delivery contracts (notably a $2.93 billion SBIR Phase II R&D award from Naval Air Warfare Center in April 2024). The top five customer agencies by potential value—Naval Air Warfare Center ($7.2 billion), Department of the Army ($82.2 million), Department of the Air Force ($68.1 million), Air Force Aeronautical Systems Center ($56.2 million), and Air Force Research Laboratory ($46.6 million)—account for 97% of combined potential value, signaling extreme concentration in Navy air systems and Air Force research priorities. By award count, Naval Air Warfare Center also leads with 81 awards, followed by Air Force Research Laboratory (69), Army R&D and Engineering Command (53), Department of the Army (27), and Naval Sea Systems Command (26), together representing 48% of recent awards. This concentration reflects the company's deep integration into SBIR and exploratory development programs across defense platforms.

Recent representative work spans multiple capability domains. Intellisense holds two active large indefinite-delivery contracts: a $58.12 million Air Force EXMET Phase III contract (awarded August 2025, through August 2030) for procurement and fielding of Integrated Weather Observation Systems (IWOS) replacing obsolete tactical meteorological platforms, and a $50 million Army SBIR Phase III contract (awarded November 2025, through November 2030) for Bradley Digital Vehicle Distribution Box replacement systems. The EXMET IDIQ alone has generated three delivery orders totaling $5.18 million in the past three months for IWOS fielding and logistics support. Beyond these production vehicles, Intellisense maintains a $14.3 million Air Force Materiel Command IDC (through December 2026) for MC-130J Video Display Terminals, and a Basic Ordering Agreement with Naval Air Warfare Center (through June 2029) for SBIR Phase II R&D services. Recent single-award Phase II and Phase III SBIR contracts exemplify the company's portfolio: a $1.85 million Air Force award for Intelligent Climate Edge Classification Platform (weather sensor analysis via machine learning); a $7.43 million Air Force SBIR Phase II for IWOS design completion and production transition; a $8.22 million Air Force Aeronautical Systems Center award for Next Generation Nuclear Flash Blindness Protection; a $2 billion Naval Sea Systems Command award for Persistent Environmental Measurement System under SBIRS High; multiple $1-2 million Army SBIR Phase II awards for chemical-imaging registration, zero-trust identity, advanced circuit breaker technology, and multiplex chemical detection combining infrared spectroscopy with AI/machine learning; a $1.4 million Naval Air Warfare Center SBIR Phase II for research and development; and a $900 thousand NASA award for in situ depolarization, attenuation, and scattering sensor development. The company's SBIR Phase I portfolio is deep, with dozens of $150-250 thousand feasibility studies across Air Force, Army, Navy, DHS, NASA, DOT, and DOE targeting topics including high-altitude infrasound detection, metalenses for infrared optics, composite inspection, digital twins, weather-integrated network software, extravehicular mobility unit heads-up displays, LiDAR sensors, and radio-frequency detection systems. On federal grants, Intellisense received NOAA support for flood location and alerting software (Phase II, $1 million-plus through October 2025), and Department of Energy Office of Science funding for hydrogen contaminant detector transition to production and augmented intelligence for microscopy.

Activity has been robust year-over-year, with 68 awards in 2022, 33 in 2023, 63 in 2024, 59 in 2025, and 19 so far in 2026, averaging around 50 awards per year over the past three years. Forty awards (combined potential value $68.8 million) reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, representing meaningful recompete exposure and opportunity for competitors and prime contractors to court the vendor's customer relationships. The top parent vehicles by task order volume include an older indefinite-delivery contract (FA862917D2505, 44 task orders, $24.2 million combined potential value), a general R&D IDC (H9222218D0002, 9 task orders, $2.5 million), and the newer air systems contracts (FA233025DB001, 7 task orders, $7.2 million; FA850922D0002, 5 task orders, $5.9 million). NAICS representation is dominated by Research and Development in Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (348 awards), with secondary depth in electrical equipment manufacturing (47) and aeronautical/nautical system manufacturing (31). PSC codes track closely: Meteorological Instruments (71), Defense R&D Applied Research (65), Defense R&D Basic Research (57), and related applied/basic research categories. The company's SCI-reported federal service contract invoicing totaled $5.5 million across FY2022–FY2025, with $2.2 million invoiced in FY2022, $401 thousand in FY2023, $1.1 million in FY2024, and $1.8 million in FY2025, reflecting volatility in SCI-reportable labor capture; FTE trajectory was 2.2 (FY2022), 1.0 (FY2023), 1.7 (FY2024), and 2.8 (FY2025). On service contracts captured in SCI, government-paid rates ranged from a 10th percentile of $11.40/hr to a median of $215.01/hr and 90th percentile of $549.71/hr, indicating wide variance consistent with mix of support labor and specialized technical roles. The company performed 100% of SCI-reported hours on its own; no named subcontractors appeared in the SCI dataset.

Intellisense operates almost entirely as a prime contractor but maintains selective teaming relationships with defense primes on specialized technical work. Named subcontract engagements include General Dynamics Land Systems (Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle Phase 3/4 development and systems technical support, awards May and October 2024); Lockheed Martin (C-130J Combined Aircraft Delivery Development Integration and Engineering, October 2024); Bluehalo LLC (Flash and Laser Airborne Protection System laser eye protection and passive triggering research, February and August 2024); and Atlantic Diving Supply (recurring subcontracts for military advanced micro weather stations and ballistic meteorological sensors, awards spanning March 2024 through August 2024). These primes route specialized sensing, optical, and display work to Intellisense, confirming the company's reputation as a capable sub-tier performer in advanced technology integration. The vendor also acts as a sub-recipient under SBIR Phase II and Phase III grants managed by National Center for Manufacturing Sciences (awards May 2024 and October 2025 for communications reliability and maintainability). The 3% sub-award share of recent awards reflects Intellisense's core posture as an innovator and prime contractor rather than a feeder to larger integration contracts; when Intellisense does subcontract, it typically performs specialized sensing, optics, or data-analytics components within larger vehicle or platform modernization efforts led by tier-one defense contractors.

Federal grant activity complements the contract portfolio. Beyond the NOAA and DOE awards noted above, the source documents recipient work under SBIR grant programs administered through civilian federal agencies' Shared Services Centers, indicating engagement across multiple federal departments in innovation solicitations. Grant work generally focuses on Phase I feasibility ($150–250 thousand) and Phase II development ($500 thousand to $2 million) in sensing, imaging, and software technologies; several awards transition through successful Phase III commercialization within the SBIR program or emerge as production contracts under IDIQs like the EXMET and Bradley DVDB vehicles.

Intellisense's 2026 activity and trajectory point to continued dominance in SBIR-led innovation and Navy air systems modernization. The September 29, 2026 award of a $1.5 million DHS Science and Technology Directorate Phase II contract for on-person screening stream-of-commerce analysis and the recent $50 million Army and $58 million Air Force indefinite-delivery awards signal sustained customer confidence and a pipeline anchored in multi-year R&D and production vehicles. The company's competitive posture is almost entirely within total small business set-asides—SBIR/STTR program vehicles, Army and Air Force applied R&D, and Navy exploratory development—rather than full-and-open competition, positioning Intellisense to capture innovation funding reserved for small businesses while leveraging technical depth to win phase progressions from Phase I feasibility through Phase III production. Subcontractors to major defense primes seeking specialized sensing, display, or data-analytics capabilities represent an alternative but secondary path; the company's 97% prime share and concentration of very large awards from Naval Air Warfare Center suggest that direct federal customer relationships and SBIR dominance drive the business model far more than prime teaming.