Starting September 1, 2026, Google began automatically migrating Search campaigns using campaign-level broad match and automatically created assets toward AI Max, rolling out gradually throughout the month, with the goal of completing the migration for eligible campaigns by the end of September. Brand inclusions and exclusions carry over automatically. You do not have to do anything for this to happen, and that is precisely the part that should worry you if you have not checked your account yet.
This article explains exactly what is happening, which campaigns are affected first and which ones have more time, what settings you should review before the migration finishes, and how Google's stance compares to what Microsoft Ads is doing with the same type of campaign at the same time.
What is automatically happening to your account starting September 1?
Starting September 1, 2026, Google began automatically migrating Search campaigns that use campaign-level broad match and the feature previously known as Automatically Created Assets, now renamed Text Customization, toward the AI Max framework. The rollout progresses gradually throughout the month, and Google expects to complete the migration of eligible campaigns by the end of September.
During the migration, your brand inclusion and exclusion controls carry over automatically to the new setup, so you do not lose those specific restrictions in the process. But the rest of the campaign's configuration (how search matching works, how text assets get generated, how final URLs expand) starts operating under AI Max's behavior, which is substantially different from the behavior that campaign was originally designed under.
Which campaigns are affected, and which ones have more time?
Search campaigns using campaign-level broad match and automatically created assets are the first to migrate, with the process completing during September 2026. Dynamic Search Ads get a different, longer timeline: during September, Google only begins showing in-account notices encouraging advertisers to voluntarily upgrade to AI Max, and automatic migration for those specific campaigns does not start until February 2027, with reminder notifications scheduled for January 15, 2027.
There is one additional date worth marking on your calendar if you manage older campaigns: future Google Ads API versions, released after September 1, will remove support entirely for campaign-level broad match and automatically created assets entities in their previous form. Older API versions will keep supporting them until their normal sunset period, expected around September 2027, giving developers additional time to update their integrations, but not unlimited time.
What settings should you review before the migration finishes?
Before September ends, review four specific areas on any campaign that has already migrated or is about to: search term matching, text customization, final URL expansion, and brand controls. These are the areas Google directly identifies as changing behavior when moving to AI Max, and they are exactly what determines whether your campaign keeps working the way you expected after migration or starts showing your ads on searches you would have previously excluded.
The most important step, however, happens before looking at any of those four areas: set a clean performance baseline this week, before the migration finishes applying to your account, so you can later tell whether a change in performance is actually due to AI Max or just normal variation for any given month. Without that baseline taken in time, you will end up guessing at the cause of any change you see in October, instead of being able to confidently attribute it to this specific migration.
Why is "you don't have to do anything" exactly the problem?
The problem is not that the migration is automatic, it is that the absence of an active decision on your part does not mean nothing changed, it means Google made those configuration decisions for you without you noticing. A migration that happens on its own, with no step requiring your intervention, is exactly the kind of change a well managed account notices and audits immediately, and that a neglected account only discovers months later, when someone wonders why cost per conversion went up with no apparent explanation.
This is the same dynamic we already documented when analyzing the bidding behavior change Google implemented on August 17, 2026: campaigns that used to outperform their stated target started aligning more consistently with that target, without the advertiser having to do anything for the change to apply. The pattern now repeats with the campaign's entire structure, not just bidding: Google keeps moving default behavior toward more automation, and the responsibility for noticing and adjusting that change remains entirely the advertiser's.
How does this compare to what Microsoft Ads is doing?
Microsoft Ads took a different stance with the same type of campaign at the same time: the company confirmed it will keep supporting Dynamic Search Ads "until further notice," with no forced sunset date. Microsoft also offered transparency tools Google has not matched with the same level of detail: an "AI optimized" label inside match type reports, AI-generated asset visibility in asset reports, a search term landing page report, and term exclusions available directly.
For any advertiser who has spent the last two years complaining that Performance Max works like a black box, Microsoft's stance gives them a concrete competitive argument and a real comparison tool. This is not about recommending you shift budget from one platform to another just because of this difference, but if you manage accounts on both platforms, it is worth using Microsoft's greater transparency as a reference point to better understand what is actually happening inside your AI Max campaigns on Google, where that same level of detail is not yet available.
What should you do in your account this week?
Start by auditing which campaigns in your account are on this migration's path (campaign-level broad match, automatically created assets) before Google moves them for you, and take a current performance snapshot of each one as a baseline. We already covered the right order for structuring a Google Ads campaign from scratch in our step by step setup guide, and this migration is a good reminder that the same review discipline does not end the day you launch a campaign, it continues every time the platform changes behavior underneath a campaign that is already running.
To size this with an illustrative example, not real data but a typical scenario, imagine an account with ten Search campaigns using campaign-level broad match, where no one checked the migration status throughout September. By mid October, the team notices an increase in cost per conversion across several of those campaigns, unable to determine with certainty whether it is due to the AI Max migration, seasonality, or a shift in competition, precisely because there is no baseline taken before the change applied.
At JP Director we treat every Google "automatic migration" announcement with the same level of attention as a manual change we would have to approve ourselves: we audit which accounts are on the migration path, take a baseline before it completes, and review the four configuration areas Google identifies as the ones that actually change behavior under AI Max.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I prevent my campaign from automatically migrating to AI Max?
Google has not publicly documented an opt-out option for this specific migration affecting campaign-level broad match or automatically created assets campaigns. Dynamic Search Ads do have a different timeline, with only voluntary upgrade notices in September 2026 and automatic migration scheduled through February 2027, giving more decision-making room for that specific campaign type.
Do my brand exclusion controls get lost during the migration to AI Max?
No. Google confirms that brand inclusions and exclusions carry over automatically during the migration process to AI Max. However, other settings like search term matching and final URL expansion do change behavior, so it is worth reviewing those specifically after the migration, rather than assuming everything was preserved exactly the same.
What happens to my tools or scripts that use the Google Ads API for these campaigns?
Future Google Ads API versions, released after September 1, 2026, will remove support entirely for campaign-level broad match and automatically created assets entities in their previous form. Older API versions will keep supporting them until their normal sunset period, expected around September 2027, so if you manage your own integrations or scripts, it is worth auditing them now to confirm they already use the AI Max configuration.
Why isn't Microsoft Ads doing the same thing as Google with Dynamic Search Ads?
Microsoft confirmed it will keep supporting Dynamic Search Ads "until further notice," with no forced sunset date like the one Google set for its own equivalent campaigns. Microsoft also offers reporting transparency levels Google does not yet match in AI Max, including AI optimization labels and search term landing page reports, reflecting a different competitive stance between the two platforms toward automation.
Last updated: September 2026. The AI Max migration remains in progress and its dates or behavior may be adjusted; verify the current status directly in your Google Ads account before making decisions based on the dates mentioned here.
