From Prompt to Propaganda: Generative AI and the New Disinformation Lifecycle — Workshop Report, Ecosystem Cartography and Research Agenda

Generative AI is transforming the economics and operational structure of information manipulation. This report documents the international workshop From Prompt to Propaganda: Generative AI and the New Disinformation Lifecycle, held on 22 September 2026 at the INFORMATIK FESTIVAL in Dresden.

Drawing on scientific papers, invited expert interventions, national ecosystem perspectives and workshop discussions, it develops an interdisciplinary cartography of disinformation research and response capabilities. Perspectives from Germany, France and Ukraine connect research, operational structures and societal resilience.

The synthesis identifies eight cross-cutting findings and thirteen research challenges. It proposes three conceptual refinements: expanding the unit of analysis from individual content to influence operations; recognising interacting information and audience-data flows; and understanding manipulation as embedded in social and institutional feedback.

The report identifies opportunities for shared experimental settings, cross-platform observability, human-centred verification, verifiable governance and European capability building. It provides an exploratory, workshop-grounded foundation for further expert validation and interdisciplinary collaboration.

An evolving companion resource centre is available at https://disinfo.spy360.net/.