When Google announced it was pushing the DSA-to-AI Max automigration from September 2026 to February 2027, most accounts exhaled. One fewer deadline.
The relief was misplaced.
The extension applied to Dynamic Search Ads specifically — a campaign type that auto-generates ad copy and destination URLs directly from your website. What it did not cover: automatically created assets (ACA) and campaign-level broad match settings. Both are still on the original September 2026 timeline. No extension announced, no opt-out reminder, nothing.
What's actually changing in September
Google's AI Max migration broke into three components:
- Dynamic Search Ads → auto-migrate to AI Max in September 2026 — extended to February 2027
- Automatically created assets (ACA) → auto-enabled via AI Max in September 2026 — still September
- Campaign-level broad match → auto-migrated to AI Max expanded matching in September 2026 — still September
DSA got more runway. ACA and broad match didn't.
The distinction matters because most accounts have ACA active by default. Google switched it on when the feature launched, and the majority of advertisers who didn't explicitly audit campaign settings never touched it. Campaign-level broad match is less universal but common in accounts where someone added broad match keywords at the campaign level rather than the ad group level — an easy structural shortcut that now carries a September consequence.
What the auto-flip actually does
When September arrives, Search campaigns with ACA enabled will be upgraded to include AI Max's text customization layer. That's a step beyond appending additional assets — the system starts rewriting your RSA headlines and descriptions in real time per query. Final URL expansion, Google's feature for routing clicks beyond your specified landing page, may activate alongside it depending on campaign configuration.
For campaign-level broad match, the auto-migration converts it to AI Max's expanded search term matching. If you've been using campaign-level broad match as a controlled prospecting layer — targeting a known intent cluster — the September flip removes that control from the equation.
Neither change requires your consent. The updated Terms of Service that took effect July 1 explicitly authorize Google to generate targets, ad copy, and destinations on your behalf. The platform owns its automation. The advertiser owns the results.
Who gets hit hardest
Four account types are most exposed:
- Accounts that never reviewed ACA settings after the feature launched (the majority)
- Anyone using broad match at the campaign level rather than the ad group level
- Regulated industry advertisers where AI-generated copy creates legal or compliance risk
- High-CPC categories where an unexpected URL redirect to a generic page kills ROAS — and Smart Bidding takes 2–4 weeks to catch up
The downstream effect in e-commerce isn't always visible immediately. A $12 CPC campaign that starts routing to a category page instead of a product page will show a slow ROAS slide over two weeks rather than a sudden cliff — exactly the pattern that prompts the wrong response of adjusting bids rather than investigating URL expansion.
What to do now
Two settings, every active Search campaign:
Campaign settings → Assets → Automatically created assets. If this is toggled on, you have a decision: turn it off and migrate to AI Max intentionally on your schedule, or accept the September flip. Either is defensible. The first gives you control over the transition. The second saves setup time if your campaigns don't have copy compliance requirements.
Campaign settings → Keywords → Broad match setting. Same logic. If you're running campaign-level broad match and it's working, moving it to ad group-level broad gives you the same matching behavior without the September auto-migration flag. Ad group-level broad match is not affected by this timeline.
The practical case for acting now: forced migrations go worse than voluntary ones. When Google auto-migrated Display campaigns to Demand Gen this year, advertisers who let the auto-migration happen lost brand safety exclusions and placement controls that didn't transfer. The September ACA flip is smaller in scope, but the dynamic is the same — settings you didn't review before the deadline tend to surface as problems after it.
What this tells you about Google's direction
AI Max went GA in April 2026 after a beta that spanned most of H1. It's Google's operating layer for all automated Search work — query matching, creative generation, URL selection. The DSA extension created a perception that the automigration phase was more flexible than it is. It isn't.
The path Google is building toward is AI Max as the default infrastructure for every Search campaign. Keywords remain as training signals. Copy inputs as suggestions. The system handles execution. Whether that's six months or two years away for your account is partly a function of whether you migrate on your terms or wait for Google to do it.
September is two months out. The audit takes less time than reading this.
If you want a clear picture of where your current Search account structure stands before the flip, the free audit tool surfaces gaps in targeting and asset configuration in a few minutes.
Sources: Search Engine Land, Google Ads Help Center, leadgen-economy.com, July 2026
