Google Ads just dropped a big update: AI Max for Search. Pair that with Performance Max (PMax) getting more powerful, and suddenly the ad world feels like it’s entering a whole new era.
On paper, this is exciting. AI Max promises smarter targeting, broader reach, and fresh traffic sources by using broad match, asset-based matching, and landing page matching. That means instead of being locked into just the keywords you feed Google, the AI scans your ads and landing pages to decide which queries to bid on. It’s like flipping a switch to instantly expand your reach.
For advertisers chasing growth, that sounds like a dream. More impressions, more clicks, more conversions. It’s no wonder Google is hyping this as the future of paid search.
But here’s the truth: if you don’t roll this out carefully, it could wreck your results.
The Hidden Risks of AI Max
When we tested these campaigns, here’s what we found:
- It immediately bid on brand terms. Both our clients’ brands and their competitors. That made performance look amazing at first, but it wasn’t true growth – it was just cannibalizing existing brand traffic we normally keep separate.
- It targeted keywords from our other campaigns. Suddenly we had overlap everywhere. We had to add hundreds of negative keywords just to stop AI Max from bidding against our own campaigns.
- It creates false positives. Early on, most advertisers will think AI Max is driving huge improvements. In reality, it’s pumping results with brand and duplicate keywords. Unless you’re digging deep into search term reports, you won’t see what’s really happening.
- Testing is incredibly difficult. Google built in a 50/50 experiment feature, but corralling what AI Max is targeting takes tons of monitoring, negatives, and careful measurement. Without that, you can’t tell if it’s truly working or just shifting credit from other campaigns.
Why This Matters
AI Max is basically Smart Campaigns 2.0 – and Smart Campaigns historically got destroyed by well-structured manual campaigns. Will AI Max ever outperform traditional Search? Possibly, but only if you're careful with the rollout.
The big problem is that Google’s incentives aren’t your incentives. Their system is designed to maximize spend across all advertisers, not maximize your profitability. That’s why their defaults push you toward broad match, automated copy, and wider inventory – even if it’s not in your best interest.
So… Should You Test AI Max?
Yes – but only if you do it the right way.
AI Max and PMax can play a role in a smart strategy, but only if you:
- Separate brand from non-brand so you don’t inflate results
- Layer on negatives to stop duplicate targeting
- Use strong bid strategies (CPA, ROAS, Max Conversions) to control efficiency
- Run careful tests against your existing campaigns to validate performance
And that’s where we come in.
Why Work With UFO
At UFO, testing isn’t optional – it’s our culture. We don’t just turn on the latest Google feature and hope for the best. We build experiments, measure rigorously, and cut through the hype to see what’s really driving profit.
Google’s AI campaigns might be the next big thing. Or they might be another shiny object that burns your budget. The difference comes down to execution – and having a team who knows how to put the AI to the test.
👉 If you want to harness AI campaigns without wasting ad dollars, let’s talk.
