BOSSIER CITY, La. — The Cyber Innovation Center has received a Gold, Best in Category award for Achievement in Collaborative Implementation in the 18th annual 2026 Globee Awards for Innovation for its work on a virtual reality training platform for U.S. Air Force personnel.
The Bossier City-based nonprofit was recognized for supporting development of training technology for Explosive Ordnance Disposal airmen in partnership with Adaptive Immersion Technologies and STRIKEWERX, the Cyber Innovation Center’s innovation hub for Air Force Global Strike Command.
The project uses a game-based virtual reality platform to simulate missions involving real-world hazards, environmental conditions and radiation physics. The multiplayer system places airmen at a virtual aircraft crash site, where they must make decisions under conditions that can vary by weather and time of day.
The system is designed to evaluate cognitive skills used during actual operations while allowing personnel to repeat training scenarios in a virtual environment.
According to the Cyber Innovation Center, the project has increased training repetitions while reducing setup time and training costs. The Defense Threat Reduction Agency has provided an additional $2 million for further development of the system.
“We are honored to receive this recognition from the Globee Awards. Through STRIKEWERX and AIT, Airmen now have a more modern approach to training that delivers realistic, repeatable missions and actionable feedback,” Cyber Innovation Center President Kevin Nolten said.
Phillip Mangos, CEO and chief scientist of Adaptive Immersion Technologies, said the project is intended to provide realistic training while generating cost savings for the Air Force.
“Our goal is to equip Airmen with a system so advanced, realistic, and indispensable to their jobs that they will not want to train without it,” Mangos said. “We are excited to see this effort recognized while we are focused on the most important factor — helping the Air Force realize a return on investment measured in millions of dollars of training cost savings.”
The Globee Awards for Innovation recognize organizations, teams, individuals, products, services and initiatives across industries. Entries are evaluated by participating judges, with winners determined by scores submitted through the awards program’s judging process.
Cyber Innovation Center is a nonprofit organization based at the National Cyber Research Park in Bossier City. Its work includes technology research and development and workforce initiatives involving government, industry and academic partners.