NATO StratCom COE Publishes NextGen Information Environment Report

NATO’s Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence released a report in early 2026 focusing on how new technologies are influencing public engagement with information. The publication addresses strategic considerations for states and alliances in the evolving information landscape.

The NextGen Information Environment report was developed by StratCom COE, a NATO-accredited organization based in Riga, Latvia, which operates independently from NATO’s Command Structure. The project began in early 2025 and brought together specialists from academia, policy, and business to study the effects of immersive and emerging technologies on the information environment.

Authored by Neville Bolt and Elīna Lange-Ionatamišvili, the report provides a framework for understanding the strategic implications of artificial intelligence, cyber-enabled platforms, and immersive media. It highlights how these technologies are changing the ways in which the public interacts with information.

Small Wars Journal published an article on February 8, 2026, summarizing the report’s findings and its relevance to cognitive warfare analysis. The article notes that the report emphasizes neuro-warfare, AI-enabled influence, and a shift from content creation to the manipulation of curation and filtering within information systems.

What the numbers show

• The report was published on February 6, 2026
• The report is 28 pages long and available as a PDF
• ISBN for the report is 978-9934-619-76-2

The report identifies early indicators that states and alliances should monitor to maintain an informational advantage. It also underscores the importance of anticipatory analysis, offensive strategic communications, and improved detection capabilities in new domains of influence.

Small Wars Journal connects the report’s themes to earlier analyses on cognitive warfare, referencing prior works that discuss the challenges of AI-enhanced influence and the limitations of current targeting logic in rapidly changing information environments.

According to Small Wars Journal, the report confirms StratCom COE’s focus on anticipating changes and strengthening strategic communication capabilities among allied nations. The article also frames the report’s relevance in the context of AI-driven cognitive warfare, describing influence as a contest increasingly shaped by algorithmic mediation.

* This article is based on publicly available information at the time of writing.