📰 Google Ads news

Google has introduced a new 'Product Titles' report in Google Ads that shows advertisers which AI-generated titles are being served in their Shopping Ads and how they are performing. Google's AI may replace the advertiser's original product title when it determines an alternative would be more relevant to the user's query.

Google updated its Gambling and Games policy on August 26, 2026, changing certification applications and compliance standards for advertisers. New applicants must use revised forms and display required licensing information on their websites.

Google published its August 2026 Demand Gen Drop on August 27th, adding a test that lets viewers start conversations with brands on messaging apps directly from Demand Gen ads on YouTube. Google claims improvements to Demand Gen are driving a 30% average increase in conversions.

Google has rolled out new testing and planning capabilities within AI Max to boost Search campaign performance. From September 2026, advertisers will be able to run multi-campaign A/B tests, making it possible to evaluate different budgets and ROI targets within a single experiment.

As AI Max rolls out across Microsoft Advertising, advertisers will see changes to their Search campaigns. Existing auto-generated assets for Responsive Search Ads will migrate into the text customization feature within AI Max, ensuring previous AI settings are preserved during the transition.

Google has integrated Gemini Omni into Google Ads, enabling multimodal video creation directly within Asset Studio. The feature simplifies video production across multiple formats, helping marketers generate more creative variety to improve ad performance.

Microsoft Advertising has unveiled a refreshed UI featuring redesigned navigation and improved tables, aimed at making the platform cleaner and easier to use. The update brings greater clarity, consistency, and smoother data interaction, while users who prefer the old layout can still switch back to the classic experience.

From late June 2026, Google has enhanced the Popular Products reports in Merchant Center to deliver a more accurate and complete picture of product performance. The improvements also extend to the Merchant API and BigQuery integrations.

Google is experimenting with a new loading animation on mobile search results pages that displays the message 'Evaluating sponsored results' while ads load, alongside both the Google and Gemini logos. The test was spotted and shared by Sachin Patel, who posted a screenshot showing placeholder ads during the loading state.

Google is expanding its 'Book Online' button, powered by Reserve with Google partner integrations, to Search and Performance Max campaigns. Previously limited to Local Service Ads and Maps ads, the button now lets searchers click through directly to an advertiser's scheduling flow from standard Google Ads.

Google is testing a swipeable category carousel within paid text ads on the search results page. The feature lets users swipe through different category tabs to browse relevant sponsored results beneath them. The test was spotted and shared by Sachin Patel.

Google Ads has launched a new Product Titles report that gives advertisers visibility into AI-generated product titles. The report displays Google AI-customized product titles side by side with the original titles, along with impressions, clicks, and other key performance metrics.

Google is testing a 'FOR YOU' label appearing in the top-left corner of dynamic remarketing ads on the Display Network. The label signals to users that the ad content has been personalized based on products or pages they previously viewed on the advertiser's website.

Starting October 1, 2026, missed calls received during business hours through Local Services Ads will be charged as valid leads if the caller stays on the line for more than 20 seconds. The updated policy also extends this charging rule to follow-up calls that meet the same criteria after the initial interaction.

Microsoft has updated its finance advertising policies for Australia and Brazil to permit cryptocurrency exchange ads across both Audience ads and Search ads. Advertisers in these markets can now promote cryptocurrency-related services more broadly within Microsoft's advertising platforms.

Google has announced a new set of Demand Gen enhancements as part of its August Demand Gen Drop. The updates focus on helping advertisers generate high-quality leads and reach new customers on YouTube and other channels. Highlights include new messaging integrations that let viewers start conversations with brands directly from the ad.

Google has officially rolled out new creative insights and experimentation features within Asset Studio. These tools are designed to move advertisers away from guesswork and toward data-driven creative decisions, with automated A/B testing capabilities now available to help identify top-performing assets.

Google is integrating Gemini Omni into Asset Studio, enabling advertisers to turn creative briefs and brand assets into campaign-ready videos. The goal is to speed up and simplify the creative production process for advertisers.

Google has updated the short_title attribute specs in Google Merchant Center to expand its use beyond Demand Gen campaigns. The attribute will now also be applied to visual ad formats such as YouTube and Discover within Performance Max campaigns.

Google has released its 2026 AI-Powered Holiday Playbook, a comprehensive guide aimed at helping retailers make the most of the holiday shopping season. This year's edition focuses heavily on how AI is shaping consumer shopping behavior and outlines the key actions marketers should take to stay competitive.

Google has significantly expanded its Reserve with Google integration for Local Services Ads, growing the number of supported booking partners from 20 to over 500. Businesses can now automatically display partner booking links directly on their LSA listings, making it easier for customers to book without leaving the ad.

Google will update its creative requirements for Google TV masthead ads in September 2026. The new guidelines will allow assets featuring alcohol, select consumer electronics such as headphones and computers, and healthcare or medicine-related content. Some previously restricted asset types will also be affected by the update.

Microsoft has updated its gambling advertising policy for Brazil with stricter licensing requirements. Effective August 19, 2026, advertisers running online casino, sports betting, or daily fantasy sports ads must hold a valid license from Brazil's Ministry of Finance and maintain a local presence in the country.

A new 'Under Re-Review' policy status has been spotted in Google Ads, indicating that a previously reviewed ad is being re-evaluated. In the observed example, the ad maintained an Eligible (Limited) status during the re-review, meaning it could still serve to a restricted audience. It remains unclear what specific conditions trigger this status.

Google published a new help document detailing Local customer optimization for Performance Max campaigns with store goals, designed to reach nearby, high-intent users through Google Maps, Waze, and local Search formats. The feature is not compatible with Merchant Center product feeds or online conversion goals.

Google has integrated its Gemini Omni multimodal model into Asset Studio in Google Ads, enabling advertisers to generate multi-format campaign-ready videos from creative briefs, brand guidelines, and existing assets for Demand Gen, Performance Max, and YouTube campaigns. The workflow includes storyboard generation, voiceovers, scene transitions, and direct export to campaigns.

A major new version of the Google Ads API Developer Assistant is now available. This release brings dual-platform support, integrating with both Antigravity and Claude Code, including native support and custom slash commands. It provides developers with Google Ads domain expertise tooling to streamline their workflow.

Google Ads has introduced new customer retention controls specifically for loyalty program members, giving advertisers greater flexibility when optimizing for existing customers. Advertisers can now set separate bid adjustments for loyalty members, on top of the already existing options for general customer retention bidding.

Google has updated its Smart Bidding guidance, cutting the recommended observation period after making adjustments from 3 conversion cycles or 4 weeks down to just 1–2 conversion cycles. This reflects Google's updated stance on how quickly its Smart Bidding systems can now adapt to new strategies or targets.

Google has announced upcoming enhancements to Ask Advisor, including shared memory across Google Ads, Analytics, Merchant Center, and Google Marketing Platform. The feature will carry goals, past decisions, and performance data seamlessly between platforms, helping advertisers get more consistent and context-aware recommendations.

Google has flagged a breaking change on its help page: GTM snippets will soon stop recognizing and waiting for gtag('config') commands. Any site using a GTM container while also relying on gtag('config','G-…'/'AW-…') calls to configure GA4 or Google Ads tags will need to migrate their setup to avoid tracking disruptions.

Microsoft Advertising has launched a new aggregate delivery status column in the Campaigns grid, currently rolling out to select users. It shows an overall delivery status per campaign, surfacing the single highest-priority issue affecting performance, making it easier to spot and prioritize problems at a glance.

Microsoft Advertising has updated its help documentation to cover campaign-level tracking templates for Performance Max shopping product URLs. Advertisers can use dynamic parameters like {AdGroup} in campaign-level tracking templates to populate asset group values, with a sample UTM string provided as a reference.

Google Ads has released three new help pages covering settings, targeting, and best practices for Performance Max campaigns using pay-per-lead objectives (LSAs). The update was first spotted by ppcnewsfeed.com.

Starting August 17, 2026, budget-limited campaigns using Target CPA, Target ROAS, or Demand Gen's Target CPC will optimize more consistently toward the stated goal. Advertisers whose campaigns were previously exceeding their targets may see costs rise if they didn't adjust their goals ahead of this date.

Microsoft Advertising has updated its Government Services Policy, effective August 19, 2026. Under the new guidelines, third-party providers of government-related services — such as passports and visas — must now provide documentation proving their authorization in the target market and obtain pre-approval through the Government Services program.

Google has launched a new Local customer optimization feature within Performance Max campaigns for store goals. It lets advertisers prioritize reaching nearby potential customers who are ready to take immediate actions, such as visiting or calling the business.

Google Ads has introduced an 'Upload as drafts' option for video assets within Asset Studio, allowing advertisers to save videos without immediately linking them to a YouTube channel. Previously, videos had to be uploaded to a YouTube channel before they could be added to a campaign.

Microsoft has updated its Financial Products policy to allow Audience Ads for cryptocurrency exchanges as part of a pilot program. This applies across all markets where Microsoft permits cryptocurrency advertising, subject to pre-approval under the Cryptocurrency advertising program. Previously, all such advertising was restricted.

Google has relocated Policy Manager — the tool that tracks the policy status of limited and disapproved ads — from Tools > Troubleshooting to Admin > Policy. A new Ads tab has been added alongside the existing Account tab, which covers account verifications and certifications.

The official Google Ads Status Dashboard has been reporting an active incident affecting AdMob since August 20, 2026. As of August 25, 2026, the issue remains unresolved.

Google has added a new beta option to the Customer Acquisition section of Performance Max campaigns called 'Only bid for new prospects.' This setting allows advertisers to focus bidding exclusively on new potential customers, automatically excluding existing customers and brand searchers. The feature was first spotted by Emirhan Ba.

Google has rebranded 'conversions with multiple data sources' as multi-source conversions across its documentation. The terminology update applies to page titles, anchor labels, and alert descriptions within Tag Diagnostics. Multi-source conversions enable advertisers to connect an existing web conversion action with additional data sources for a more complete view of performance.

Google is now letting advertisers optimize Demand Gen campaigns toward multiple conversion goals simultaneously. Through the updated interface, you can enable individual goals such as Submit lead forms, Contacts, Engagements, and YouTube follow-on views, giving you more granular control over campaign optimization.

Google Ads has added a dedicated Customer Lifecycle Optimization section to the Conversions Summary page. The section covers key stages of the customer journey including Customer Acquisition, Lapsed Customers, and Loyalty Program Members, giving advertisers a centralized view of lifecycle performance and optimization opportunities.

Google is inviting advertisers to register for Rethink 2026, a free virtual event focused on growth strategies for Search and YouTube Ads. The Rethink Retail session is scheduled for September 16 at 10 a.m. ET and will cover best practices, the latest industry trends, and consumer insights to help marketers drive results.

A new configuration option has appeared in Google Merchant Center for Shopper Incentive, allowing advertisers to set a maximum cap on the amount of money customers can receive as part of the incentive. The update was first spotted by Arpan Banerjee.

Starting August 2026, Google automatically upgrades all TrueView In-stream and In-feed for Consideration campaigns to multi-format Video View Campaigns (VVC) powered by Google AI. The new campaigns include a mix of skippable in-stream, in-feed, and Shorts ads.

Starting August 24, 2026, Google Merchant Center is updating performance reports to improve clarity and align reporting definitions with Google Ads and YouTube. Changes include separating YouTube affiliate results for a more comprehensive view of product impact.

Google Ads has enhanced ad transparency by adding a "How this ad was made" section to My Ad Center. This panel discloses when an ad was created or edited using AI, helping users understand the origin and nature of AI-generated ads.

Microsoft has published a new guide called "Prepare for the Age of AI Shopping" to help advertisers navigate agentic commerce and AI-driven shopping experiences. The playbook covers three key areas, including how to get discovered through AI-ready product feeds in Microsoft Merchant Center.

Google has rolled out updates to its tagging tools to simplify website performance measurement for advertisers. The changes consolidate measurement settings, enabling advertisers to manage both Google Ads and Google Analytics from a single place through integrated tagging.

Google Merchant Center has introduced a new Event section within Promotions, allowing advertisers to create promotions tied to sales events such as discounts or special occasions. Advertisers can also attach event-related images and add dedicated event details during setup.

Google Ads has added two new options for loyalty program members within Customer Retention settings: the ability to bid higher for loyalty members and to show member benefits in eligible countries. These sit alongside the existing option to adjust bids to re-engage lapsed customers.

Google has announced major updates to Local Service Ads (LSAs), including the introduction of pre-badge ads that allow businesses to start receiving leads after passing preliminary checks while still completing onboarding. Google continues to invest in LSAs even as they transition into the Google Ads ecosystem.

Google is shutting down the standalone Local Services Ads dashboard and moving LSA campaigns into the Google Ads interface under a new Performance Max campaign type focused on pay-per-lead objectives. The rollout kicked off in August with US advertisers in verticals such as pet care, home services, wellness, and education.

Google Ads and AI Max are rolling out new experimentation and planning capabilities, including A/B tests, brand and location parameter controls, and enhanced forecasts in Performance Planner. These tools give advertisers more oversight and control over their automated campaigns.

Google Ads has started notifying Performance Max advertisers that it will use generative AI to create missing aspect ratio versions (vertical, square) from existing horizontal videos. Advertisers who don't want this to happen can opt out before September 4, 2026.

Advertisers setting up Performance Max and Shopping campaigns can now upload their business logo directly within Google Ads. If no logo is added, the system will fall back to the logo stored in Google Merchant Center, as it did previously. This update was flagged by Arpan Banerjee.

Google is expanding Search campaign experiments with the ability to test budgets and ROI targets across multiple campaigns in a single A/B test. Building on the one-click experiments introduced for AI Max in August 2025, the new feature — called "Budget or bidding target experiments for Search campaigns" — lets advertisers validate bidding and budget changes at scale before committing to them.

Google is updating Performance Planner with new tools that let advertisers preview the likely impact of campaign changes before pushing them live. Advertisers can now see how adjustments to bidding or budget targets might affect performance, and apply them directly if the projected outcomes align with their goals.

Google AI automatically creates video ads from your existing images and text in Demand Gen campaigns and serves them alongside your own creatives — sometimes without advertisers realising it. If you'd rather not have AI-generated videos running in your campaigns, here's how to disable the feature, with screenshots included.

Google Ads has rolled out a redesigned Asset Optimization panel with an improved interface. The new layout organises assets into three clear categories — Text, Image, and Video — each with its own specific optimization settings. Toggles for individual features make it easier to control how assets are optimised.

Google has updated its Attribution Reports help page to clarify a 7-day upload limit for offline conversions. The attribution engine will only process offline conversions uploaded within the last seven days — anything uploaded after that window will be excluded from attribution modelling.

Google has refreshed the Misleading Ad Design policy help article to include additional examples and clearer guidance for advertisers. This is a documentation update only — it does not change how the policy is enforced.

Google Ads is upgrading TrueView in-stream and in-feed consideration campaigns to Video View Campaigns (VVC), moving toward multi-format ads powered by Google AI. The change is designed to improve performance and reach across placements. Advertisers should note that campaign settings will be affected by the migration.

Google Ads has introduced a new feature that suggests sitelinks advertisers can add to their ad extensions. The feature was confirmed as live on August 21, 2026.

Google Ads can now suggest sitelinks for advertisers to add to their ad extensions. A new prompt in the Google Ads UI surfaces relevant sitelinks that link directly to specific pages on an advertiser's website, making it easier to enrich ads without manually hunting for URLs.

Microsoft Advertising is doubling down on its bidding and measurement capabilities. Advertisers using conversion-based strategies like tCPA and tROAS are finding it easier to hit their targets, while legacy controls like Max CPC are increasingly seen as disruptive to spend efficiency. Microsoft is removing Max CPC as an option for conversion-based bidding strategies.

Microsoft Advertising has begun rolling out AI Max globally to all accounts as an optional add-on for Search campaigns. AI Max combines search term matching, text customisation, and final URL expansion to extend reach beyond existing keywords, generate relevant ad messaging, and route users to the most appropriate landing pages.

Google is emailing advertisers to warn that from January 31, 2027, any product images in Merchant Center below 500x500 pixels will be disapproved and stop serving. This applies to the image_link attribute and potentially secondary image attributes. The recommended minimum image size going forward is 800x800 pixels.

Google is gradually rolling out the ability for some advertisers to apply for certain certifications directly within their Google Ads account, under Admin > Policy > Account, as an alternative to going through the Help Center. The rollout began in August 2026.

Google has introduced a new native_commerce attribute in Google Merchant Center that allows eligible product listings to participate in a "Buy Now" purchase flow directly within Google surfaces like Gemini and AI Mode in Search, without users having to visit an external website. A dedicated help page has now been published for this attribute.

Google has officially described Watch-While Ads, a new YouTube ad format that had been spotted earlier this month. Unlike traditional mid-roll ads, Watch-While Ads play without pausing the video, creating a non-disruptive experience for viewers. The format is supported across Demand Gen and Performance Max campaigns.

Google has released version 25.1 of the Google Ads API. Key additions include comprehensive support for conversion lift and brand lift measurement studies with new metrics and resources, as well as category scoping in BenchmarksService for more granular benchmark analysis.

From August 18, 2026, Google has started automatically enabling conversion-based customer lists for accounts that already use Enhanced Conversions and Customer Match but hadn't manually turned on this feature. Advertisers who didn't want this change needed to have opted out before that date.

Google has updated its documentation for Branded Searches, a conversion type that tracks brand-related searches on Google and YouTube following ad exposure on YouTube or Demand Gen. A notable change: the default conversion window has been shortened from 30 days to 7 days.

Google Ads appears to be rolling out a new Enhanced Matching option for Customer Match in account settings. When enabled, it could help advertisers extend the reach of their first-party audiences using consented publisher signals. The feature was first spotted on August 19, 2026.

Google Ads appears to be rolling out a new Enhanced Matching option for Customer Match under Account settings. When switched on, the setting can broaden audience reach by using connected user lists — matching consented users from publishers with your own first-party data.

Google Ads is enhancing Performance Max video assets with a new generative AI feature that automatically creates versions of your videos in missing aspect ratios. The goal is to improve ad reach and viewing experience by ensuring your video creative is properly formatted for every placement.

Google has tightened its vehicle ads landing page requirements. Dealerships must now show essential information — including dealership name, location, price, VIN, and availability — immediately when the page loads. The previous standard, which allowed this information to be hidden behind a click or interaction, is no longer acceptable.

Google is broadening View-Through Conversion (VTC) Optimization for Demand Gen campaigns, building on the beta launched in 2025. Key changes include limiting VTC optimisation to video assets only, while view-through conversions from image assets will still be reported but won't influence bidding.

A change that took effect on August 17 means that campaigns which have consistently delivered a real CPA below their target will have their tCPA automatically adjusted upward to reflect more "stable" performance. Experts like Martin Roettgerding recommend switching to Maximise Conversions without a tCPA as an alternative to avoid unwanted bid inflation.

Microsoft Advertising has released official documentation for its Conversions API (CAPI). Currently in beta, this server-side solution lets advertisers send conversion and customer interaction data directly from their own systems to Microsoft Advertising, supporting a range of measurement scenarios.

Google Ads has officially documented Branded Searches as a new conversion type, which records search queries made for a brand on Google and YouTube after a user has seen an associated ad. The feature is available for YouTube and Demand Gen campaigns and sits under the Consideration goal.

Google has quietly removed its July 14 announcement about expanding Shopping ads and free listings to 14 new markets. Countries including Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, and Serbia have also disappeared from the list of supported countries.

Google is testing blue hyperlinks within ad descriptions in sponsored search results. The format suggests that keyword-rich clickable links may be coming to Search ad descriptions more broadly. The test was first spotted by Sachin Patel and Barry Schwartz.

Google has updated its Demand Gen bidding documentation, reducing the recommended daily budget for Target CPA campaigns from 15x to 10x the target CPA. This lower threshold makes Demand Gen more accessible for advertisers with tighter budgets.

From August 24, Google will update traffic classification in Merchant Center performance reports, with changes applied retroactively to July 1. YouTube affiliate clicks will be separated from organic traffic, and product-level reporting will be extended to Performance Max, Video, App, and Demand Gen campaigns.

Google has updated its Merchant Center documentation confirming that the agency version now supports linking up to 1,000 Merchant Center accounts, significantly increasing its account management capacity.

Starting September 2026, Google will remove manual campaign-level language settings for Search campaigns and the Search network within Performance Max. Ads will instead be matched automatically based on the language of the creative assets themselves.

Google has updated its Merchant Center documentation to confirm that Merchant Center for Agencies can now link up to 1,000 client Merchant Center accounts under a single agency account, giving agencies clearer guidance on account management capacity.

Google Ads is phasing out campaign-level language targeting settings for Search campaigns. Advertisers will need to update their configurations before the change takes effect.

Microsoft Bing is testing large image formats within Search ads, a change that could meaningfully improve click-through rates and boost the visual appeal of ads in search results.

Google is testing a more prominent star rating format in Search ads, displaying the advertiser's score and review count in a dedicated section alongside the ad copy. The format could help users evaluate advertisers faster and may drive higher engagement.

As part of the June–August 2026 update rollout, Smart Bidding Exploration is no longer limited to Search and will now be available across all Performance Max campaigns that don't use a product feed. A separate beta is available for Shopping campaigns. This allows the algorithm to explore incremental conversions beyond the immediate target.

From August 18, 2026, Google will automatically assign a customer type to any conversion-based customer lists that haven't been manually classified. An incorrect label could skew new customer acquisition costs within Smart Bidding.

In August 2026, Google updated the language and readability requirements for YouTube and Discover Feed ads. The changes aim to provide advertisers with clearer guidelines but do not affect the enforcement of existing policies.

Google has announced changes to how view-through conversion (VTC) optimization works in Demand Gen campaigns. Going forward, VTC optimization will only apply to video assets. Image VTCs will still appear in reporting but will no longer be biddable or count in the main conversions column.

Google Ads is alerting advertisers to the requirement to declare EU political ads in their campaigns. Advertisers who fail to do so will have their ads automatically flagged as containing EU political content, limiting their visibility across EU countries.

Google Demand Gen can now run dynamic ads directly from a business data feed, without requiring a Merchant Center account. This expands access to dynamic ad formats for service-based advertisers and B2B brands.

Google has launched a security pilot in the Google Ads API that restricts access to sensitive API methods to pre-approved Google Cloud projects only. The initiative aims to protect manager accounts from potential compromise, and developers can apply to join the pilot.

Starting August 2026, Google is rolling out its Limited Ad Serving policy to all Google Ads products—including Search, YouTube, Gmail, Play Store, and Discover—with a gradual rollout through 2028. Ads from "unqualified" accounts won't be disapproved but may see reduced impression volume.

Starting August 24, 2026, Google will update Merchant Center performance reports to improve clarity and consistency across Google platforms. The update aims to align reporting definitions between Merchant Center, Google Ads, and YouTube for a more unified view of product performance.

Google Ads is eliminating campaign-level language targeting for Search campaigns and Performance Max, with the change rolling out in late September. Google will rely on automated signals for language matching, leaving advertisers with open questions about how to manage multilingual campaigns going forward.

Google has updated its support form to let advertisers select a specific campaign when submitting a support request. The change streamlines the support process by making it easier to pinpoint the issue. The update was discovered by Arpan Banerjee.

Google Ads is extending its Financial Services Verification requirements to 13 additional EEA countries. Applications will open on August 11, 2026, with enforcement beginning September 15, 2026. Advertisers in banking, loans, investments, trading, and insurance sectors will be affected.

Advertisers can now run Performance Max campaigns with a store visit goal, prioritizing high-intent users located near their business across Google Maps, Waze, and Search simultaneously.

Google is migrating Local Services Ads into the Google Ads ecosystem under a Performance Max pay-per-lead format. The transition, which begins in August 2026, brings changes to bidding, reporting, and campaign management.

Starting in September 2026, Google will begin automatically migrating Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) campaigns to AI Max for Search. New DSA campaigns will no longer be available to create, and all eligible migrations are expected to be completed before the end of September.

Google is updating how tCPA and tROAS campaigns behave when they are budget-constrained. The change, effective August 17, 2026, is designed to deliver more consistent performance aligned with the advertiser's stated targets. It affects Search, Shopping, Performance Max, Demand Gen, and Travel campaigns.

The official Google Ads Developer Blog published new updates on August 12, 2026, covering changes to the DFA API and the Reporting API, continuing the steady cadence of technical releases throughout the month.

Google's new mandatory text disclaimers in Google Ads have been deployed globally during the first week of August 2026. In affected ad formats, these disclaimers replace the first description line of the ad.

As of August 3, 2026, the Google Ads API no longer supports the creation of Smart Campaigns. Developers and advertisers relying on the API to create these campaign types must now migrate to alternative campaign formats.

From August 5, 2026, Google has expanded its Limited Ad Serving policy beyond Search to cover all Google Ads surfaces, with a phased rollout running through 2028. Ecommerce brands in particular should audit their accounts to ensure compliance and avoid impression restrictions.

Starting August 17, Google is adjusting its bidding algorithm so that budget-constrained campaigns deliver results more consistently in line with the advertiser's declared target, rather than silently over- or under-performing against it. Advertisers should review and update their targets before the launch date using the Bid Target Adjustment Tool.

On August 11, 2026, Google published a wording update to the ad requirements for YouTube and Discover Feed, aimed at improving clarity. The update is editorial only and does not reflect any changes to how the policies are enforced.

Google is rolling out new transparency features to help users understand how AI was used to create the ads they see. An informational label will indicate how an ad was generated, with the goal of building greater user trust in AI-powered advertising.

Google has pushed back the automatic migration of Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) campaigns to AI Max, originally scheduled for September 2026, to February 2027. The delay gives advertisers additional time to plan the transition and run their own tests before the migration takes place.

As of August 5, 2026, the Google Ads API requires passkey authentication to generate new OAuth 2.0 tokens, dropping support for traditional passwords and two-factor authentication. This change affects Google Ads Editor, Scripts, BigQuery Data Transfer Service, and Data Studio.

From August 17, 2026, Target CPA, Target ROAS, and Target CPC bidding strategies will optimize toward the advertiser's configured target rather than historical actual performance in budget-limited campaigns. Advertisers are advised to review and adjust their targets before the change goes live using the Bid Target Adjustment Tool.

Google has announced that existing Travel campaigns will be migrated to the new Search campaigns for Travel format within Google Ads. The migration is set to roll out in stages in the near future.

Starting in August 2026, Google's Limited Ad Serving policy will cover all Google Ads surfaces, with a gradual rollout through 2028. Advertisers who are unverified or have policy violations will see their impressions restricted, while fully compliant advertisers will not be affected.

Google Ads is rolling out a set of new AI-powered tools designed to help advertisers surface insights faster, make smarter decisions, and simplify day-to-day workflows. Among the key additions is Ask Advisor, which allows advertisers to get recommendations and answers directly within the platform.

In August 2026, Google is updating its Political Content policy for New Zealand to include supported language requirements for Google Ads and DV360. Election ads and official government ads will be permitted in supported languages, provided they include Māori words or phrases where applicable.

PPC professional Bia Camargo has raised concerns about Google Ads contacting clients directly without involving their agencies. One of her clients received an email flagging an 'efficiency drop' detected by Google's diagnostic system and offering to make account adjustments in a five-minute technical review at no extra cost. This kind of unilateral outreach is being seen as problematic for agency-client relationships.

Google Ads is running a promotional offer giving advertisers up to $1,500 in ad credit when they launch their first Demand Gen campaign. To qualify, advertisers need to enter a promo code and set up the campaign according to the offer requirements.

Google will migrate existing Travel campaigns to the new Search campaigns for Travel format in Google Ads, with the process set to begin in Q3 2026. New Search campaigns for Travel will be created automatically to replicate the closest equivalent of each existing campaign, as outlined across multiple Google help documents.

Sitelinks within Google's AI Mode ads are now displaying as non-clickable, a change that could impact user interaction and overall ad visibility. The behavior was first flagged by Sachin Patel.

Google Analytics 4 has introduced a new campaign data import validation report to help advertisers verify and improve the quality of their imported campaign data. The report supports non-Google campaign data, including sources like Microsoft Advertising, making it easier to diagnose and fix data quality issues.

Bing is testing two new call-to-action buttons — 'See more' and 'Visit site' — on sponsored search results, aiming to make it easier for users to navigate to advertiser websites. The test also shows a difference in how the 'Sponsored' label is displayed between the two variants.

Starting September 1, 2026, Google Ads will automatically upgrade Search campaigns that use Campaign-level Broad Match and Automatically Created Assets to AI Max. Advertisers can refer to the official help page for full details on the migration process.

Google is testing a new sponsored search results format that displays a list of advertisers alongside their favicons, adding more visual context to the sponsored section. This follows earlier testing of grouped favicons next to sponsored search listings.