diff --git a/.github/scripts/generate_sample_catalog.mjs b/.github/scripts/generate_sample_catalog.mjs
index 300ceca..68f2b19 100644
--- a/.github/scripts/generate_sample_catalog.mjs
+++ b/.github/scripts/generate_sample_catalog.mjs
@@ -71,6 +71,9 @@ const DIMENSION_DEFAULTS = {
     protocol: {
         title: 'Select a Protocol',
         placeholder: 'Choose the protocol for your agent',
+        // Only special-cased ids need an entry here (ordering + custom label);
+        // any other id is auto-formatted by titleCaseId (e.g. `activity` ->
+        // `Activity`), so a newly declared protocol needs no code change.
         options: {
             responses: 'Responses',
             invocations: 'Invocations',
@@ -759,22 +762,32 @@ Examples:
   "Agent that discovers and invokes tools from a remote MCP server."`;
 
 /**
- * Generate a one-sentence description from README content (used when only
- * BLANK descriptions are being filled — the default, non-refine path).
- * displayName is intentionally NOT requested here; when not refining it is
- * derived deterministically from the folder name.
+ * Generate a displayName AND a one-sentence description from README content
+ * (used when only BLANK fields are being filled — the default, non-refine
+ * path). Both fields are produced by the LLM so newly added samples get an
+ * AI-authored displayName instead of a raw folder-name derivation. The caller
+ * only writes back whichever field was blank, so existing values are never
+ * touched, and falls back to `displayNameFromPath` when the LLM yields no
+ * usable displayName.
  *
  * @param {string} readmeContent
  * @param {string} samplePath
- * @returns {Promise<{ description: string } | null>}
+ * @returns {Promise<{ displayName: string, description: string } | null>}
  */
 async function generateWithLLM(readmeContent, samplePath) {
-    const systemPrompt = `You generate one-sentence descriptions for a VS Code template picker.
-The user has already selected language, framework, and protocol before seeing these items, so the description must NOT repeat those choices.
+    const systemPrompt = `You generate the displayName and description of a hosted-agent sample shown in a VS Code template picker.
+The user has already selected language, framework, and protocol before seeing these items, so neither field should repeat those choices.
 
+displayName rules:
+- A short, human-friendly Title Case name for the scenario (2-4 words)
+- Name what the sample demonstrates, not the folder (e.g. "Basic Agent", "Foundry Toolbox", "Azure Search RAG", "Human-in-the-Loop")
+- No leading numbers, no raw folder tokens, no words like "Sample" / "Demo"
+- Keep known acronyms uppercased (MCP, RAG, SDK, API, UI)
+
+description rules:
 ${DESCRIPTION_GUIDANCE}
 
-Respond ONLY with a JSON object: {"description": "..."}`;
+Respond ONLY with a JSON object: {"displayName": "...", "description": "..."}`;
 
     const userPrompt = `Path: ${samplePath}
 
@@ -785,12 +798,13 @@ ${readmeContent.substring(0, 2000)}`;
     if (!parsed) {
         return null;
     }
+    const displayName = typeof parsed.displayName === 'string' ? parsed.displayName.trim() : '';
     const description = typeof parsed.description === 'string' ? parsed.description.trim() : '';
-    if (!description) {
-        warn(`LLM response for ${samplePath} had no usable "description" field; description left empty.`);
+    if (!displayName && !description) {
+        warn(`LLM response for ${samplePath} had no usable "displayName"/"description" fields; values left empty.`);
         return null;
     }
-    return { description };
+    return { displayName, description };
 }
 
 /**
@@ -871,11 +885,28 @@ const DISPLAY_NAME_TOKEN_CASING = {
     ui: 'UI',
 };
 
+/**
+ * Title-case a dash/underscore-delimited id into a user-facing label: split on
+ * `-`/`_`, capitalize each word, and apply `DISPLAY_NAME_TOKEN_CASING` for
+ * known acronyms/brands. `azure-search-rag` -> `Azure Search RAG`,
+ * `activity` -> `Activity`. Used both as the dimension-option label fallback
+ * (buildDimensions) and by displayNameFromPath.
+ *
+ * @param {string} id
+ * @returns {string}
+ */
+function titleCaseId(id) {
+    return id
+        .split(/[-_]/)
+        .filter((w) => w.length > 0)
+        .map((w) => DISPLAY_NAME_TOKEN_CASING[w.toLowerCase()] ?? (w.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + w.slice(1)))
+        .join(' ');
+}
+
 /**
  * Derive a displayName from the template's directory name. Strips a leading
  * numeric ordering prefix (`09-`, `12_`) so upstream reorderings don't bleed
- * into the picker, then converts dash/underscore tokens into Title Case
- * words and applies `DISPLAY_NAME_TOKEN_CASING` for known acronyms/brands:
+ * into the picker, then title-cases the remaining tokens (see titleCaseId):
  * `09-declarative-customer-support` -> `Declarative Customer Support`,
  * `azure-search-rag` -> `Azure Search RAG`.
  *
@@ -884,12 +915,7 @@ const DISPLAY_NAME_TOKEN_CASING = {
  */
 function displayNameFromPath(samplePath) {
     const dirName = samplePath.split('/').pop() || '';
-    return dirName
-        .replace(/^\d+[-_]/, '')
-        .split(/[-_]/)
-        .filter((w) => w.length > 0)
-        .map((w) => DISPLAY_NAME_TOKEN_CASING[w.toLowerCase()] ?? (w.charAt(0).toUpperCase() + w.slice(1)))
-        .join(' ');
+    return titleCaseId(dirName.replace(/^\d+[-_]/, ''));
 }
 
 /**
@@ -980,7 +1006,7 @@ function buildDimensions(templates) {
         ];
         const options = orderedIds.map((id) => ({
             id,
-            displayName: defaults.options[id] || id,
+            displayName: defaults.options[id] || titleCaseId(id),
         }));
         dimensions[dimKey] = {
             title: defaults.title,
@@ -1099,10 +1125,11 @@ function applyOverrides(templates, overrides) {
 /**
  * Fill and (optionally) refine displayName and description fields.
  *
- * Default path (AI_REFINE off): empty displayName is derived deterministically
- * from the folder name; empty description is filled by the LLM when configured.
- * Values that already exist (PM-curated or preserved from the prior catalog)
- * are left untouched.
+ * Default path (AI_REFINE off): only BLANK displayName/description fields are
+ * filled — the LLM generates both from the sample's README when configured
+ * (empty displayName falls back to folder-name derivation otherwise). Values
+ * that already exist (PM-curated or preserved from the prior catalog) are left
+ * untouched, so a normal run is strictly incremental.
  *
  * Refine path (AI_REFINE on, opt-in via the `refine_with_ai` workflow input):
  * the LLM reviews BOTH fields of every template against its README and rewrites
@@ -1133,40 +1160,52 @@ async function autoFillDisplayFields(templates, commitSha) {
 }
 
 /**
- * Default path: derive empty displayName from the folder name and fill empty
- * descriptions via the LLM. Never touches values that already exist.
+ * Default path: fill only BLANK displayName/description via the LLM, using each
+ * sample's README as context. Values that already exist (PM-curated or carried
+ * over from the previous catalog) are never touched, so a normal run is purely
+ * incremental — only newly added samples get generated. Empty displayName falls
+ * back to folder-name derivation when the LLM is unavailable or yields nothing.
  *
  * @param {Array<{displayName: string, description: string, path: string}>} templates
  * @param {string} commitSha
  * @param {boolean} hasLLM
  */
 async function fillBlankDisplayFields(templates, commitSha, hasLLM) {
-    // Fill displayName first — deterministic, no API calls.
-    for (const template of templates) {
-        if (!template.displayName) {
-            template.displayName = displayNameFromPath(template.path);
-        }
-    }
-
-    const needsDescription = templates.filter((t) => !t.description);
-    if (needsDescription.length === 0) {
-        console.log('All templates already have a description.');
-        return;
-    }
-    if (!hasLLM) {
-        console.log(`${needsDescription.length} templates need a description but no LLM is configured; leaving empty (will be flagged as anomalies).`);
+    const needsFill = templates.filter((t) => !t.displayName || !t.description);
+    if (needsFill.length === 0) {
+        console.log('All templates already have a displayName and description.');
         return;
     }
 
-    console.log(`Generating descriptions for ${needsDescription.length} templates using LLM...`);
-    for (const template of needsDescription) {
-        const readme = await fetchReadme(template.path, commitSha);
-        if (!readme) {
-            continue;
+    if (hasLLM) {
+        console.log(`Generating displayName/description for ${needsFill.length} templates using LLM...`);
+        for (const template of needsFill) {
+            const readme = await fetchReadme(template.path, commitSha);
+            if (!readme) {
+                continue;
+            }
+            const result = await generateWithLLM(readme, template.path);
+            if (!result) {
+                continue;
+            }
+            // Only write back the field that was blank — never overwrite an
+            // existing value, keeping the default run strictly incremental.
+            if (!template.displayName && result.displayName) {
+                template.displayName = result.displayName;
+            }
+            if (!template.description && result.description) {
+                template.description = result.description;
+            }
         }
-        const result = await generateWithLLM(readme, template.path);
-        if (result?.description) {
-            template.description = result.description;
+    } else {
+        console.log(`${needsFill.length} templates need a displayName/description but no LLM is configured; deriving displayName from the folder name and leaving description empty.`);
+    }
+
+    // Fallback for any displayName still blank (no LLM, missing README, or the
+    // LLM returned nothing) so the picker never shows an empty label.
+    for (const template of templates) {
+        if (!template.displayName) {
+            template.displayName = displayNameFromPath(template.path);
         }
     }
 }
diff --git a/.github/workflows/sync-sample-catalog.yml b/.github/workflows/sync-sample-catalog.yml
index 687a53a..5ac15be 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/sync-sample-catalog.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/sync-sample-catalog.yml
@@ -4,17 +4,19 @@ on:
   workflow_dispatch:
     inputs:
       commit_sha:
-        description: "Commit SHA from microsoft-foundry/foundry-samples to pin to (leave blank to use the latest main commit)"
+        description: "foundry-samples commit to pin to. Blank = latest main."
         required: false
         type: string
         default: ""
+      # Default (both off): incremental — only fill blank displayName/description
+      # with AI; existing values are kept untouched.
       refine_with_ai:
-        description: "Let AI review and refine existing displayName/description (not just fill empty ones). Leave off to only fill blanks."
+        description: "Full refresh, keep existing values. AI reviews all entries but only rewrites ones that no longer fit."
         required: false
         type: boolean
         default: false
       ignore_existing_catalog:
-        description: "Ignore the previous catalog's displayName/description (regenerate from scratch). Use for the first AI refine so existing values don't anchor the result."
+        description: "Full refresh, overwrite everything. AI regenerates ALL displayName/description from scratch. Use only when necessary."
         required: false
         type: boolean
         default: false