Google Ads Is Handing Businesses a Bigger Steering Wheel, and I Think It Is Time to Grab It

With Google beginning the rollout of automatic upgrades for campaigns using Automatically Created Assets and campaign-level broad match settings from September 2026, and Dynamic Search Ads scheduled to begin their sunset and auto-upgrade process from February 2027, businesses are being given an opportunity to review their campaigns and prepare before changes are applied automatically.

Daleen Prinsloo, who has worked in digital since 2005, believes businesses should use this transition as an opportunity to take a closer look at how their Google Ads campaigns are structured.

“Google is giving businesses more controls over how AI is used in their campaigns. The important thing is to understand those controls and use them to support your business goals rather than simply allowing the changes to happen in the background.”

A New Approach to Google Ads

AI Max introduces controls designed to give advertisers more input into how AI expands their campaigns.

One of these is AI Brief, which allows advertisers to provide information about what their ads should communicate, which searches they want to target and who they want to reach. Google Ads has also introduced text disclaimers, allowing required wording to be included in ads, which can be relevant to businesses operating in regulated industries.

Google reports that advertisers using the full AI Max feature set saw an average 7% increase in conversions or conversion value at a similar CPA or ROAS compared with search term matching alone. The figure is based on Google’s internal 2026 data for non-retail advertisers and is not a guarantee of results for individual businesses.

Google also provides one-click experiments that allow advertisers to test AI Max before applying changes more broadly.

What is Changing with Google Ads AI Max?

AI Max is now moving out of beta as Google changes how Search campaigns use automation and AI. Google has not announced a separate South African launch date for AI Max. Instead, the feature is being rolled out within existing Search campaigns, and Google describes AI Max as an optimisation layer rather than a new campaign type.

For South African advertisers, the changes are therefore relevant now as Google begins its wider transition.

Several existing Google Ads features are being incorporated into AI Max. Campaigns using Automatically Created Assets, now referred to as text customization, and campaigns using the campaign-level broad match setting are being automatically upgraded from September 2026. Google has also extended the timeline for Dynamic Search Ads, with their sunset and automatic upgrade process now scheduled to begin in February 2027.

AI Max brings together several AI-powered capabilities, including search term matching, text customization and final URL expansion. Google has also introduced controls that allow advertisers to provide guidance around areas such as brands, locations and advertising text.

Google is also continuing to add tools around the AI Max system. AI Brief allows advertisers to provide information about their business, audience and messaging in their own words. On 23 September 2026, Google announced that AI Brief is being expanded to additional languages and that a new AI Max reporting feature is being introduced to help advertisers see the relationship between search terms, ad assets and landing pages.

For businesses already running Google Ads, this means the changes are not simply about switching on another feature. Campaign structure, targeting, ad messaging, landing pages and reporting can all become part of the AI Max setup.

This is why reviewing campaigns before an automatic upgrade can give businesses an opportunity to decide how they want their advertising to operate, rather than simply accepting the default transition.