Google Ads is preparing to move eligible Search campaigns that use automatically created assets (ACA) or the campaign-level broad match setting into AI Max during September. Search Engine Land published advertiser notifications on August 6, and Search Engine Roundtable reported the same timing on August 7. Both say automatic upgrades begin on September 1, 2026. Google's public announcement confirms a September start and says eligible upgrades should finish by the end of the month, but does not currently give a day.
The date therefore has two evidence layers. The September migration is confirmed by Google. The September 1 start comes from advertiser communications seen by two independent trade publications. The practical conclusion is the same for teams in Türkiye: active Search campaigns using ACA or campaign-level broad match need to be inventoried before September.
What changes, and what does not?
AI Max is not a new campaign type. It is a suite that brings targeting and creative optimization settings into one layer of an existing Search campaign. Google's help documentation describes two main areas: search term matching and asset optimization. Search term matching can use broad match and keywordless technology alongside existing keywords, ads, and URLs. Asset optimization includes text customization and optional final URL expansion controls.
The automatic migration does not enable every AI Max feature in every campaign. Eligible ACA campaigns will move with search term matching and text customization, the new name and management surface for ACA, enabled by default. Campaigns using the campaign-level broad match setting will move with search term matching enabled. Google says the mapping is designed to preserve existing behavior as closely as possible.
This Fark Studio illustration conceptually shows separate creative-asset and broad-match systems passing through a migration gate into the AI Max layer. It is not a Google Ads interface or a performance forecast.
Do not confuse this with the DSA timetable
Google's April announcement originally placed Dynamic Search Ads (DSA), ACA, and campaign-level broad match inside the same September transition. A June 11 update changed the DSA schedule. Automatic DSA upgrades and the end of new DSA creation now begin in February 2027. ACA and campaign-level broad match remain on the September 2026 timetable.
That distinction belongs in the account inventory. The presence of a dynamic ad group does not mean the campaign automatically moves on September 1. If the same campaign also has ACA or campaign-level broad match enabled, those settings can still be affected on their own schedule. Audit enabled settings, not campaign names.
Who is affected?
The first group is performance teams that rely on automated headline and description creation in Search campaigns. Because text customization carries that function into AI Max, creative review and brand-language controls continue in a new management surface. The second group is accounts that use the campaign-level setting to convert all keywords to broad match. That arrangement moves into AI Max search term matching.
The agency risk is more than a relocated toggle. One team may own keyword coverage, another may own ad assets, and a third may own measurement templates. When those controls appear under one suite but responsibilities remain fragmented, poor queries or inappropriate generated copy can take longer to detect.
Google's public documentation does not list a market exclusion for Türkiye and describes hundreds of thousands of global advertisers already using AI Max. Eligibility, account notifications, and the exact completion date can still vary by campaign. The absence of a banner is not proof that a setting will never move.
What are the performance risks?
An automatic upgrade does not guarantee a gain or loss. The important variable is how the campaign uses the setting today. Broad match inside a disciplined negative-keyword and conversion-quality system may make the migration mostly operational. If weak leads or low-value actions feed Smart Bidding as primary conversions, broader query discovery can amplify the existing problem.
ACA users also need brand and legal review. Text customization can create copy from existing ads, landing pages, and assets. Google says generated assets can be removed and reporting can show metrics such as spend and conversions. That does not justify waiting to discover an outdated price, unsupported claim, or wrong product promise after delivery begins.
Do not assume final URL expansion will automatically switch on. Google's migration mapping for ACA specifies search term matching and text customization; it does not say every ACA campaign must receive final URL expansion. Check the setting campaign by campaign. If enabled, Google's help page warns that static tracking templates or incorrect {lpurl} usage can produce 404s on dynamic landing pages. Pinned RSA assets may also be ignored when a different URL is selected.
This diagram shows varied query inputs passing through a campaign layer toward several landing pages while exclusion and measurement guardrails constrain the routes. It teaches the control problem without imitating a product screen.
An eight-step audit before September 1
1. Identify affected campaigns. Export Search campaigns from Google Ads or Ads Editor. Give ACA, campaign-level broad match, DSA, and AI Max separate columns.
2. Record the notification. If an account banner or email has arrived, save the campaign ID, date, and stated migration window. If not, keep Google's public September timeline as the planning assumption.
3. Document the feature mapping. For ACA, verify text customization and search term matching. For campaign-level broad match, verify search term matching. Do not infer final URL expansion.
4. Measure query quality. Match 60 to 90 days of search terms with sales, qualified leads, returns, and spam outcomes. Total conversions alone are not enough.
5. Clean creative sources. Correct stale prices, dates, inventory, guarantees, and regulated claims on landing pages. Text customization cannot turn a weak source into a reliable promise.
6. Define brand and URL controls. Review brand inclusions and exclusions, location intent, URL inclusions and exclusions, and sensitive pages against the campaign's objective.
7. Test measurement end to end. Validate the tracking template, {lpurl}, consent flow, primary conversions, and CRM revenue import with a real test path. Confirm a dynamic landing page does not return a parameter-related 404.
8. Establish a baseline and observation window. Save pre-migration query, cost, conversion-quality, landing-page, and generated-asset data. Evaluate through at least one full conversion-lag window, not one day.
This text-free Fark Studio flow sends a campaign asset through link, creative, targeting, and measurement checks before an approval or correction path. The goal is to create ownership and evidence before migration.
What should teams do now, and where should they wait?
If ACA or campaign-level broad match is active, start the inventory and quality audit now. Do not treat the migration as a cosmetic interface change: query scope, generated copy, and measurement now meet inside one campaign decision. Teams that need more control can assess Google's voluntary upgrade and one-click experiment options, configuring the settings before the automatic move.
If a campaign only uses DSA, there is no reason to panic about September 1. Google's official schedule now starts that migration in February 2027. Use the additional time to document DSA URL rules and plan the later move to standard ad groups.
Fark Studio's view is that the important part is not simply “AI Max is turning on.” Automations that used to sit in separate controls are moving into one management layer. A strong account does not resist automation by default; it defines measurable boundaries for acceptable queries, messages, and destinations. That requires performance marketing, digital marketing, and SEO teams to share the same URL and conversion-quality record.
If you want to build an AI Max migration inventory and measurement check for your Search campaigns, contact Fark Studio. The priority is not to turn every setting on or off in a rush. It is to prove what behavior each campaign will inherit before September.
Sources
Google Ads & Commerce, We’re upgrading Dynamic Search Ads to AI Max, April 15, 2026; updated June 11, 2026. Primary source for the September ACA/broad-match schedule, DSA delay, and official feature mapping.
Google Ads Help, How AI Max for Search campaigns works, current as of August 7, 2026. Primary source for search term matching, text customization, URL controls, and reporting.
Google Ads Help, About the broad match keywords campaign setting, current as of August 7, 2026. Primary source confirming the September 2026 AI Max upgrade for campaign-level broad match.
Search Engine Land, Google to auto-upgrade automatically created assets to AI Max, August 6, 2026. Secondary report of the September 1 advertiser notification and feature mapping.
Search Engine Roundtable, On Sep 1 Google Ads To Migrate ACA & Campaign-Level Broad Match To AI Max, August 7, 2026. Independent secondary report of the September 1 notification.
