Dynamic Search Ads are being phased out: the roadmap to AI Max

Google is discontinuing Dynamic Search Ads (DSA). Google announced this on 15 April 2026, with an important correction on 11 June 2026: The original plan was that from September 2026, no new DSA campaigns could be created. Google has reversed this decision and re-enabled the option to create new campaigns from 15 June 2026. You can therefore still create new DSA campaigns, but only until January 2027. The successor is called AI Max for Search.

As a reminder, if you are not actively using DSA: Dynamic Search Ads automatically generated ads from the content of your website, without a keyword list. Instead, Google crawled the landing pages and created suitable headlines and target URLs itself. This very principle is adopted by AI Max and expanded with generative AI and significantly more signals.

Worth noting: two different timelines are running side by side, and they should not be confused.

Track 1: campaign-level broad match and automatically created assets (ACA)

• 15 April 2026: Google announces the DSA discontinuation.
• 1 to 30 September 2026: Campaigns with campaign-level broad match and automatically created assets were automatically migrated to AI Max. This track was not postponed.

Track 2: Dynamic Search Ads themselves

• 15 April 2026: Google announces that from September 2026, no new DSA campaigns can be created and that the automatic migration will also start in September 2026.
• 11 June 2026: Google revises this plan in the Ads Developer Blog. The ability to create new DSA campaigns will be re-enabled on 15 June 2026, with automatic migration postponed to February 2027.
• 15 June 2026 to January 2027: Extended testing and migration window. New DSA campaigns can still be created, and you can voluntarily switch to AI Max and compare both variants.
• September 2026: Initial notifications about the upcoming DSA migration appeared in the account.
• January 2027: The ability to create new DSA campaigns will end permanently.
• 15 January 2027: Google sends reminders to accounts with still active DSA campaigns.
• 1 to 28 February 2027: Automatic migration of all remaining DSA campaigns to AI Max.

As a reason for the postponement, Google cites feedback from advertisers who needed more time for testing due to planning certainty for the fourth quarter (the Christmas trading period).

AI Max extends the DSA principle with three core components that can be activated within regular search campaigns:

• Search term matching: AI Max looks at the intent behind a search query as well as the content of your website, and therefore covers a broader range of search terms than DSA.
• Text customisation: Gemini generates headlines and descriptions from your existing ads, landing page texts, and other website content, matched to each specific search query.
• Final URL expansion: The AI automatically selects the most suitable landing page from your domain. Essentially, this is the old DSA function, now integrated into AI Max.

There is also a structural change: AI Max is controlled at campaign level, and the separate dynamic ad groups used in DSA no longer exist.

DSA and AI Max in direct comparison:

Since the broader rollout, feedback from practice is increasing, which should be taken seriously in the assessment:

• Brand protection: There are reports that the AI misattributes statements, such as clinical information that is incorrectly attributed to another product. Industries with legally sensitive statements (health, finance) should monitor this closely.
• Cannibalisation of brand traffic: AI Max can intercept search queries that actually belong to a dedicated brand campaign, with implications for attribution and cost per click.
• Budget leakage: Several agencies report that budget from search campaigns is noticeably flowing into the Display Network.

The default settings of AI Max are geared towards performance; you have to set up brand protection yourself. Those who do not configure anything here leave the AI with more leeway than many are aware of. Some agencies have consciously stepped back from AI Max after mixed tests, until the control options are more mature.

Automation does not mean you have to relinquish control. In response to criticism, Google has introduced several adjustments:

• Negative keyword lists at the campaign level to consistently exclude unwanted search terms.
• URL exclusions, so that final URL expansion does not access specific pages.
• Term exclusions for automatic ad text generation: prevents the AI from using certain words or phrases.
• “Branded Searches” switch: a newer setting not yet available everywhere, allowing you to determine how AI Max handles brand-related search queries.

None of these options are enabled by default. Those who do not adjust anything after the automatic migration will adopt Google’s default settings unchecked.

1. Check inventory: Are there still active DSA campaigns running in your account?
2. Test early, before Google migrates for you: Those who wait until February 2027 will be automatically migrated without a testing phase. A controlled migration on your own allows for A/B comparisons against the existing campaign.
3. Configure brand protection before going live: Set up negative keyword lists, URL and term exclusions, rather than making adjustments afterwards.
4. Monitor brand campaigns separately: Check whether AI Max is diverting traffic from existing brand campaigns, and adjust the budget distribution accordingly.
5. Adjust reporting: Additionally, Performance Max has recently started reporting individual channels (Search, YouTube, Display, Gmail, Discover, Maps), where previously there was only “Cross-network”. Those who have built dashboards or exports on the old aggregate value should check this now.

The DSA replacement is not isolated. Microsoft Advertising has also rolled out AI Max globally for Search campaigns: the major search engines are synchronously moving towards generative, language model-supported campaign management.

1. DSA is being phased out, but with a longer transition period than initially announced: New campaigns can still be created until January 2027, with automatic migration starting in February 2027.
2. Two timelines, not to be confused: broad match/ACA was migrated as planned in September 2026, while the DSA-specific migration has been postponed to February 2027.
3. AI Max is more than DSA: broader keyword understanding, generative ad texts, automatic landing page selection, managed at campaign level without separate ad groups.
4. Control is not a default setting: Negative keyword lists, URL and term exclusions, as well as the branded searches switch must be actively set.
5. The trend extends beyond Google: Those already using ChatGPT Ads will recognise the pattern: control is shifting from manual settings to AI systems. Reliable tracking and good landing page content therefore matter more.

Would you like to migrate your DSA campaigns to AI Max in a controlled way, with brand protection set up properly? Our Google Ads service page shows what working with Rheinwunder looks like.

Sources: Search Engine Land, Search Engine Journal, Search Engine Roundtable, Google Ads Help Centre, Google Ads Developer Blog (11 June 2026), PPC Land, Digiday. As of 24 September 2026.