Did Your Search Campaign Move to AI Max? 5 Settings to Check After the September Change
Google moved Search campaigns that used campaign-level broad match or automatically created assets to AI Max during September. No need to panic, but there are five places worth a look.
If you opened your Google Ads account this month and saw AI Max in your campaign settings, you did nothing wrong. According to Google, Search campaigns that used campaign-level broad match or what used to be called automatically created assets were moved to AI Max automatically between September 1 and 30. This post explains what that means and which five settings are worth checking today.
AI Max is a three-part package added on top of a Search campaign. The first is search term matching: your ad can appear for broader phrases that match what the person means, not only the keywords you typed. The second is text customization: Google can adapt your headline and description to the searcher, drawing on your website. The third is final URL expansion: the ad can send people to another page on your site that Google finds more relevant, instead of the one you chose.
If you use Dynamic Search Ads, the timeline is different. Google has offered voluntary upgrade tools, but the automatic move is set for February 2027. There is no rush for those campaigns, though the checklist below will help there too.
So what does this mean for you? Your campaign keeps running, and in most cases you will not see a problem right away. But the system now decides across a wider field. A restaurant's ad might match someone looking for wedding catering, and a dental clinic's ad might match someone searching for cheap dentures. That is not always bad, but you are the one who should judge whether it fits your business. The list below breaks that review into five headings.
- Search terms report and negative keywords
- Brand and URL restrictions
- Whether auto-generated text fits your brand voice
- Where landing page expansion is sending people
- Accuracy of conversion tracking
1. Search terms and negative keywords
The search terms report shows which words people typed before seeing and clicking your ad. After the move, this list usually gets longer. Look at the last two weeks and spot searches unrelated to your business, such as free, job listings, repairs, or products you do not sell. Add them as negative keywords, which stop your ad from showing on certain searches. Do not treat it as a one-time task; checking weekly for the first month is reasonable.
2. Brand and URL restrictions
AI Max includes brand controls and URL controls. If you do not want to appear on competitor brand searches, or only want ads on your own brand searches, decide that here. Likewise, if there are pages on your site you never want tied to an ad, you can leave them out with a URL restriction. These settings do not automatically match your preferences, so check them by hand.
3. Does the auto-generated text sound like you?
When text customization is on, Google can create new headlines from the wording on your site. Review them in the ad preview and the asset report. Read anything that must be accurate, such as price, discounts, guarantees, or scope of service. If you find a line that does not sound like you or makes a wrong promise, you can turn the feature off or limit it with text guidelines. In sensitive fields such as health, law, or finance, do not skip this check.
4. Which page does the ad go to?
With final URL expansion on, an ad can send people to a different page than the one you picked. Often that helps, but sometimes it may land on a blog post, an old campaign page, or a page with no contact details. Check the landing page breakdown in your reports, open the most-clicked pages, and see for yourself what a searcher would find. Exclude unsuitable pages with a URL restriction.
5. Is conversion tracking working properly?
AI Max learns which searches work by looking at conversion data. A conversion is a measured action that matters to you, such as a phone call, a form submission, or a purchase. If tracking is missing or wrong, the system expands toward the wrong searches. Submit a test form or make a test call to confirm the conversion is recorded, and make sure the same action is not counted twice. For the first four weeks after the move, a short weekly check is enough. Look at search terms, spend, and conversion counts, and if something differs clearly from the previous period, look for the cause. If you are happy with the results, you can go back to a monthly check. If not, switching features off one at a time to find the one causing trouble teaches you more than turning everything off at once. If an agency or freelance specialist manages your account, you can ask them about these five headings. They should be able to tell you which settings are on, what limits were set, and what they saw in search terms over the last two weeks. If you manage the account yourself, adding this list to your calendar as a recurring reminder makes it easier.
Automation does not decide for you; you draw the limits, and the system expands within them.