Why This Autumn Matters
Google rarely changes this much in one go. Between August and October 2026, it moved Search campaigns onto AI Max, took away language targeting, gave Performance Max proper channel controls and switched on a handful of new automated features by default.
Some of these changes help. Some quietly spend your money in ways you didn't sign up for. Most accounts we have looked at since September have at least one setting that changed without anyone noticing.
This is the short version of everything, with a link to our full write-up on each.
1. Search Campaigns Moved to AI Max
If you used campaign-level broad match or the old automatically created assets, Google upgraded those campaigns to AI Max during September 2026. Dynamic Search Ads follow in February 2027.
What to check: Open each Search campaign and look at the AI Max settings. Make sure search term matching, text customisation and final URL expansion are set the way you want, not the way Google defaulted them.
Full guide: The AI Max auto-upgrade explained
2. Language Targeting Has Gone From Search
From September 2026, you can no longer set a language at campaign level for Search, or for the Search part of Performance Max. Google now works it out from your ad, the search and the user's settings.
What to check: Any campaign that relied on language settings to keep ads separate, such as a Welsh-language campaign or ads aimed at a Polish-speaking community, now relies entirely on the language of your ads and landing pages.
Full guide: Google has removed language targeting from Search
3. Performance Max Finally Has Channel Controls
Rolling out from 15 October 2026, you can mark channels as high or low priority and cap how much a low-priority channel can spend each day. For the first time you can tell PMax to go easy on Display and Search partners.
What to check: Look at your channel performance report. If Display or partner traffic is eating budget without converting, this is the control you have been waiting for.
Full guide: Performance Max channel controls and budget caps
4. Smart Bidding Exploration for PMax and Shopping
Campaigns on Target ROAS can now let Google bid on searches outside what it would normally go for, in exchange for a slightly lower ROAS. It is designed to find new customers.
What to check: Only switch it on if the campaign isn't limited by budget and you can afford a small, temporary dip in return.
Full guide: Smart Bidding Exploration: should you turn it on?
5. Demand Gen Gets a Longer Safety Net
Google has extended performance-based cost adjustments on Demand Gen from three weeks to 60 days, and added a Data Strength Uplift metric that shows how many conversions your first-party data setup is recovering.
What to check: If you dismissed Demand Gen as too expensive to test, the risk is now lower.
Full guide: Demand Gen updates: the 60-day cost adjustment
6. Automated Promotions Are On By Default
Google can now scan your website for offers and add them to your ads as promotion assets. It's switched on by default for campaigns with location assets and no manual promotions.
What to check: If your site shows an offer that has expired, or one that only applies to certain customers, turn this off or keep a close eye on it.
Full guide: Google is adding promotions to your ads automatically
The 20-Minute Account Check
If you only have a short window, do these in order:
What This Means Going Forward
The direction is clear. Google wants fewer settings and more automation, and it is turning features on first and letting advertisers opt out later. That isn't necessarily bad, but it does mean an account left alone for three months is no longer the same account.
The businesses getting the best results from these changes are the ones checking what Google has switched on, keeping what helps and turning off what doesn't.
If you would rather someone else did that, we offer a free PPC audit that covers every change on this list.