Lumena Inc.

Lumena Inc., a small disadvantaged business manufacturer based in Golden, Colorado, develops and delivers MindGym, an immersive cognitive performance and resilience training platform delivered via sensory deprivation cube kiosks, to the Department of Defense as a prime contractor (97% of recent awards) under Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase III commercialization efforts and direct purchase orders. The company competes predominantly under full-and-open awards, with selective Total Small Business set-asides on SBIR and STTR Phase III actions.

Lumena's federal footprint is deeply concentrated within the Air Force enterprise. The Department of the Air Force in its various commands accounts for roughly 67% of recent award count, with the Air Force Materiel Command Research Laboratory anchoring the largest single dollar amount at $3.4 million across four awards. The Air Force (non-regional) has placed eleven awards totaling $2 million, Air Mobility Command holds four awards at $291 thousand, and Air Forces Europe and Africa account for three awards worth $445 thousand. The Department of the Army Washington National Guard and the Department of the Air Force Space Command round out the customer set. The Air Force Research Laboratory's $1.78 million SBIR Phase II Follow-On award for the Tactical Cognitive Fitness Initiative (awarded June 24, 2024, completing January 26, 2026) represents the largest single action in the portfolio and underscores the Air Force's commitment to scaling MindGym across commands. Representative recent prime work includes a $847,986 SBIR Phase III contract with Global Strike Command for MindGyms and extended support at Barksdale (September 2024), a $341,380 Total Small Business purchase order with the Air Force for the Integrated Prevention Office SBIR Phase III MindGym offering at Cheyenne Mountain (September 2025), and a $378,670 non-set-aside purchase order with the Washington National Guard for MindGym cognitive performance training (September 2025).

The vendor sits on one identified parent vehicle: the Information Analysis Center Multiple-Award Contract (one task order). However, the vast majority of Lumena's work flows through direct purchase orders and definitive contracts rather than larger government-wide vehicles, reflecting the company's status as a specialized SBIR/STTR Phase III commercialization partner rather than a holder of broad IDIQs or GWACs.

Activity has grown sharply year over year, from three awards in 2022 to a peak of thirteen in 2025, with two awards already recorded in 2026 as of the source date. Nine awards totaling $1.7 million in combined potential value complete within the next twenty-four months, creating a near-term recompete landscape. The combined potential value across the entire 36-award portfolio is $8.3 million, with $7.5 million obligated (90% execution rate), indicating strong follow-through on Air Force commitments.

Lumena subcontracts minimally—only one sub-award appears in the source data: a 2025 research and development effort for the Air University Innovation Accelerator under HII Mission Technologies Corp as prime, covering MindGym one-year membership and leadership training. The company's business model is built on prime direct delivery rather than teaming or subcontracting.

The MindGym platform itself is engineered to deliver psychological skills training, stress mitigation, and cognitive performance enhancement for military personnel through self-serve, immersive sensory deprivation cube technology featuring integrated desktop kiosks. The solution has transitioned from SBIR Phase I and II R&D into Phase III fielded deployments across multiple Air Force installations (Air Combat Command, Air Mobility Command, Pacific Air Forces, Global Strike Command, Materiel Command, and Air Mobility Command among others) and has expanded into Air National Guard and Army National Guard service. The company also manufactures hardware upgrades, including the MindGym V2 configuration with enhanced soundproofing and structural durability. Contract work encompasses licensing, on-site training, customer success management, annual software maintenance, sustainment of private secure internet connectivity, and regular software deployments. The portfolio includes a small number of stroboscopic therapy protocol research contracts (STTR Phase I, May 2024) and one COVID-era specialized training development effort referenced in the source ($1.5 million during pandemic period), suggesting some willingness to adapt the cognitive training platform to emerging use cases beyond core personnel readiness.