InfoRange at the NATO StratCom COE
How NATO StratCom COE Uses InfoRange® to Realistically Simulate the Information Environment in Training and Exercises
The requirements for training and exercises in the information environment have changed fundamentally. Today, Strategic Communications (StratCom) must be trained under conditions that closely reflect real information environments: dynamic digital networks, shifting narratives, diverse audiences, and an operational picture that is closely linked to other domains.
To reflect that reality, the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence (NATO StratCom COE) has been working with us since 2021. At the center of this collaboration is the continuous development of InfoRange® – a simulation platform designed to make the information environment realistically trainable in exercises and training activities.
The starting point: no tools for realistic StratCom simulation
At the beginning of the partnership, there was a clear capability gap. No commercially available system was specifically tailored to the requirements of Strategic Communications while also enabling an immersive simulation of the information environment.
InfoRange® was therefore further developed together with NATO StratCom COE from the ground up, with one clear objective: not just to analyze the information environment, but to make it concretely simulatable in exercises.
Today, InfoRange® enables:
- the simulation of digital information environments and networks
- the representation of narratives and their dynamics
- the integration of different audiences
- training from the tactical to the strategic level
In doing so, it brings together key StratCom areas, including Public Diplomacy, Public Affairs, Information Operations, and Psychological Operations.
A development partnership shaped by real training requirements
A key success factor in the collaboration is the close integration of development and operational use. InfoRange® is not developed in isolation. Instead, it is continuously tested and refined in real training contexts.
New features emerge directly from actual requirements in the exercise environment of NATO StratCom COE. This ensures that the platform remains consistently focused on practical value.
Its modular architecture also makes it possible to:
- represent different training scenarios
- integrate new tools and processes flexibly
- incorporate current insights from research and operational practice
Use in exercises and simulations
InfoRange® is used regularly by NATO StratCom COE in exercises and simulations. These range from smaller formats to larger exercise environments.
One example is its integration into Locked Shields 2024, one of the world’s largest cyber defense exercises. Here, the information environment was systematically incorporated into the exercise design as a distinct training dimension.
In this context, NATO Allied Command Transformation also recognized InfoRange® as an important milestone for the Centre.
As a result, the information environment is no longer treated merely as a supporting element alongside other exercise components. Instead, it becomes a dedicated training dimension in its own right.
This allows StratCom to be trained in an environment that reflects the real dynamics of the information space and brings different communication requirements together within a common exercise framework.
InfoRange® in use at NATO StratCom COE:
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More InformationTrainable from the tactical to the strategic level
In modern operations, the information environment has a direct impact on perception, behavior, and decision-making. A training environment that can realistically reflect these connections is therefore increasingly important.
That is exactly where a simulation environment like InfoRange® creates value. It does not merely display individual communication products. It also reflects interactions, audience behavior, and the broader dynamics of the information space in a way that supports realistic training and exercises.
With InfoRange®, organizations can:
- simulate audience reactions
- assess communication measures in their wider effects context
- train complex information scenarios across multiple levels
The platform therefore supports training at every level, from operational scenarios to strategic decision-making.
Future requirements are also taken into account. For example, generative AI approaches can be incorporated into the simulation of audiences and scenarios.
Strengthening modern StratCom training
The collaboration with NATO StratCom COE shows how the information environment can be established as a fixed component of modern training and exercises.
Through close professional feedback, recurring use in exercises, and a design oriented toward real information dynamics, the result is a platform on which Strategic Communications can be trained under credible conditions rather than taught only in theory.
This provides defense organizations with a solution that is practical, modular, and aligned with the real demands of modern exercises.
Customer quote
“With InfoRange, an artificial information environment has been created that looks and feels like a real one, making it possible to train Strategic Communications campaigns as well as defensive and offensive operations in near real time – with the goal of strengthening the joint StratCom capabilities of NATO, Allies, and partners.”
Jānis Sārts, Director, NATO StratCom COE
