TL;DR
Starting September 1, 2026, Google began automatically migrating campaign-level Broad Match and legacy Automatically Created Assets campaigns into AI Max, with the rollout completing by the end of September. Brand inclusions and exclusions carry over automatically, but settings like Search Term Matching, Text Customization, and Final URL Expansion can shift without any action from you. Dynamic Search Ads campaigns are on a separate, slower timeline and won't auto-migrate until February 2027. If you don't audit your account this month, you won't be able to tell whether next month's performance change came from AI Max or from something breaking in the migration.
Most advertisers are going to notice a shift in their account next month and blame the algorithm. The real story started weeks earlier, quietly, in the background of their own account. Google didn't ask permission for this one. It just started moving campaigns.
What Is Actually Migrating to AI Max This Month
Google is automatically upgrading two specific campaign types into the AI Max framework: campaigns using campaign-level Broad Match, and campaigns using legacy Automatically Created Assets (ACA), now referred to as Text Customization.
This is not a full account overhaul. It's targeted at these two legacy setups specifically.
- Campaign-level Broad Match campaigns are being folded into AI Max's Search Term Matching
- Legacy ACA campaigns are being folded into AI Max's Text Customization
- Brand inclusions and exclusions you've already set carry over automatically
- The rollout is gradual across September, not a single overnight switch
Future versions of the Google Ads API released after September 1 will drop support for these legacy entities entirely. Older API versions keep working until their normal sunset, expected around September 2027, so scripts and third-party tools have a longer runway than the campaigns themselves.
Why This Migration Is Happening Automatically Instead of By Choice
Google is consolidating fragmented Search automation features into one framework because AI Max is becoming the default architecture for Search campaigns.
This isn't the first step in that direction and it won't be the last. Google has been building toward this for over a year, and Search is increasingly designed around a smaller number of highly automated frameworks rather than many separate manual settings.
For advertisers, the practical result is the same either way. Whether Google explains the "why" or not, the account changes underneath you. This is the same pattern we saw when Google removed campaign-level language targeting and when Local Services Ads got folded into Performance Max. Manual controls keep disappearing into automated frameworks, one campaign type at a time.
Is Dynamic Search Ads Migrating Too
No. Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) is on a separate, later timeline.
Google will begin displaying in-account notices encouraging voluntary DSA upgrades this month, followed by reminder notifications to advertisers still on legacy DSA starting January 15, 2027. Automatic migration for DSA doesn't begin until February 2027.
If you manage accounts with DSA campaigns, you have real time to plan that transition deliberately instead of reacting to it. Don't let the urgency of the Broad Match and ACA migration bleed into DSA decisions that don't need to be made yet.
What Settings Actually Change When a Campaign Migrates
Four areas are worth checking on every migrated campaign, because these are where the actual behavior of the campaign can shift.
| Setting | What to check after migration |
|---|---|
| Search Term Matching | Whether match behavior is now broader or narrower than your old Broad Match setup |
| Text Customization | Whether headlines and descriptions being auto-generated still match your brand voice and offer |
| Final URL Expansion | Whether Google is now sending clicks to different landing pages than you intended |
| Brand Controls | Whether your existing brand inclusions/exclusions actually carried over correctly, don't just assume they did |
Checking these four settings takes less time than explaining to a client next month why conversions dropped and you don't know why.
The Mistake Most Advertisers Are About to Make
The mistake isn't the migration itself. It's not knowing you had a clean baseline before it happened.
If you don't record your account's performance the week before migration completes, you'll have no way to separate three very different explanations when performance shifts in October:
- AI Max is genuinely working better than your old setup
- September was just a slow or strong month for reasons unrelated to the migration
- Something in the migration broke, and a setting is now working against you
Without a baseline, all three look identical on a graph. With one, you can actually answer the question a client is going to ask you. This is the same reasoning behind why Quality Score alone can't tell you what's actually happening in an automation-heavy account. A single metric or a single graph never tells the full story on its own.
What To Actually Do This Week
Set a pre-migration performance baseline for every affected campaign before the rollout finishes for your account.
- Pull current CPA, ROAS, and conversion volume for every campaign using Broad Match or ACA
- Check whether your brand controls actually transferred correctly, not just whether Google says they did
- Review the auto-generated Text Customization output against your actual brand voice
- Confirm Final URL Expansion is sending traffic where you want it sent
- Flag any DSA campaigns separately, since those aren't migrating yet and don't need emergency attention
This is a one-time, half-hour audit per account. Skipping it doesn't save you time, it just moves the time cost to a client call where you're troubleshooting blind. If your conversion tracking isn't already solid, that baseline won't mean much either, since a shaky data foundation makes any before/after comparison unreliable.
FAQ
When did Google start migrating campaigns to AI Max?
Google began automatically migrating campaign-level Broad Match and legacy Automatically Created Assets campaigns to AI Max on September 1, 2026, with the rollout completing by the end of the month.
Do I need to do anything for the migration to happen?
No, the migration is automatic and requires no action to occur. However, you do need to manually review the settings that transferred to make sure they match your intended strategy.
Is Dynamic Search Ads affected by this migration?
Not yet. DSA campaigns are on a separate timeline, with automatic migration not starting until February 2027.
Will my brand exclusions still work after migration?
Google states that brand inclusions and exclusions carry over automatically, but you should verify this directly in each migrated campaign rather than assuming it worked correctly.
How long will older API versions still support the legacy campaign types?
Older Google Ads API versions will continue supporting legacy Broad Match and ACA entities until their normal sunset period, expected around September 2027.
Ready to Know What Changed in Your Account?
If you're managing your own Google Ads account and want a second set of eyes on what this migration actually changed in your specific setup, book a free strategy audit with Fuel Digital. We'll walk through your full account audit together and tell you exactly where the automation is helping and where it's quietly working against you.
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