What is AI Max in Google Ads?
People familiar with digital search know how decisive the last year was and this year too shall be. The increased use of voice search, adoption of Google’s AI mode and AI Overviews meant users are now asking longer and more conversational questions than ever before. Therefore, traditional keyword based advertising needed more optimization prowess with better control and visibility. And this is why we have Google AI Max.
Launched in 2025, AI Max is seen as a milestone upgrade for Google search campaigns. What is it all about? How as an advertiser can you leverage it to its fullest? Does it interfere with any of your efforts as an existing advertiser? In other words, how is it different from PMax or is it actually different at all? You may have multiple questions. This blog tries to answer them all. Read on!
What is AI Max?
AI Max from Google is a detailed suite of features that seek to improve your Google search campaigns. It lets you improve your ad performance across bidding, targeting, creative and placements – all of it while giving you more controls and transparency. Simply put, you can create and optimize better ads for more profitable outcomes because you get AI powered enhancements.
What is the purpose of AI Max?
As mentioned at the outset, the way we search is evolving fast because of AI. As longer, conversational queries are being asked, manual keyword lists may not correctly or to their fullest identify and match actual user intent.
AI Max seeks to address this shift in search by using Google’s AI to understand intent in a more broad and relevant manner, thereby helping advertisers reach relevant queries they may have previously missed.
At the same time, it gives you more controls for brand safety, campaign transparency and campaign management.
How does it work (Features)
The features of AI Max work together to excel the overall performance of your ad campaign.
● Search term matching: Rather than focusing on the manual keywords, search term matching uses Google AI to expand and improve your ad reach. It does so by understanding user intent, matching queries from your creatives, landing pages and URLs and finding relevant and useful searches you might be missing. It’s kind of a smart broad match to find new customers.
● Text customization: It leverages generative AI to create headlines and descriptions matching a user’s specific search query. After analyzing your landing pages, the ads already running and keywords, it explores your messaging and accordingly generates the variations.
● Final URL expansion: With this feature, it is ensured that a user lands on the relevant page of your website for the search they have made. Rather than sending everyone to your homepage, it analyzes the existing pages of your website and then sends users to the page that best matches their search.
● Locations of interest: It helps advertisers reach people who are not in a physical location but may be interested in it.
● Brand controls: Another important feature of the suit, brand controls allows advertisers to decide how they would like to appear. It allows you to set inclusion and exclusion to ensure your ads appear where you want.
Results
According to Google, “advertisers that activate AI Max in Search campaigns will typically see 14% more conversions or conversion value at a similar CPA/ROAS.” (Source) and campaigns that are still using exact and phrase keywords, the uplift is even higher (27%).
● L’Oréal doubled their conversion rate while cutting costs per conversion by 31% (Source) MyConnect generated 16% more leads while reducing cost per lead by 13% with a 30% increase in conversions from new search queries (Source)
How to enable AI Max in Google Ads?
For a new campaign:
1. Click the “Create” button in your Google Ads account
2. Select “Search Campaign”
3. On the “AI Max” page, toggle to opt for AI Max settings
4. Choose which AI Max features you want to enable
5. Complete your campaign setup
For an existing campaign:
1. Go to “Settings” in your Campaigns menu
2. Select the Search campaign you want to update
3. Click “AI Max” in the section menu
4. Toggle to opt in and select your needed features
You can test AI Max on one campaign to measure the impact before using it for your entire account.
Google AI Max vs PMax
Both of them use Google’s AI but they are different tools. Performance Max is a campaign type, launched before AI Max and it lets Google automatically run your ads on its platforms – Search, YouTube, Display. Gmail, Discover and Maps. On the contrary, AI Max works within search campaigns and by using AI, it understands user intent, matches ads to relevant queries, enhances ad text and sends the right users to the right landing pages, all of it while giving advertisers better visibility and more control. If PMax maximises reach across Google ecosystem, AI Max seeks to make ads and searching them more smart and relevant.
When is AI Max right for you?
● You need more focussed control and transparency
● You already have successful search campaigns that you need to enhance
● You want to maintain keyword targeting while adding AI capabilities
● You want to see exactly what’s working and why
● You need to report comprehensive performance data
In simple words, if you want to reach more customers without managing hundreds of keywords manually, if you struggle to be in the know of the latest search trends and how people enter their queries, if you have limited time for optimization of your ad campaigns and want better results with more control, AI Max is good for you.
When you may not need it?
While AI Max is built to give you more power and control to get more done, in certain situations, it may not be extremely important like if you run very specialized campaigns with highly specific keywords, when you have more time for manual optimization and if you operate in industries where exact keyword control is required legally.
Things to remember before using AIMax
AI Max is set to Off by default. You can enable all the features available or pick the ones that you want.
Make sure your website clearly details your businesses using language your audience uses. This is because AI Max analyses your website and its content to fetch ad variations.
Concluding remarks
AI Max allows you to leverage AI’s maximum capabilities in advertising with a single click. You gain more control on your budget and brand. Overall, you reach more customers in ways that were previously unavailable. Best of all, you can start small, and based on the results, expand in future. While AI can help us achieve more, it is still important to understand that without human oversight, AI is simply of no use. AI Max must be used with right data, proper goals and regular human insights for the best outcomes.
