Gemini and Google Ads in 2026: what changes in campaigns

Updated in September 2026. This article was published in May 2024, when Gemini was arriving in Google Ads. We rewrote everything with what Google has actually launched since then.

Summary

AI became the foundation of the platform. At Google Marketing Live 2026, Google presented Ask Advisor, an agent with Gemini that spans Google Ads, Google Analytics, Merchant Center and Google Marketing Platform.
AI Max for Search is the path for search campaigns. It expands terms, generates texts and chooses the landing page. Dynamic Search Ads campaigns are being migrated to it.
Performance Max became more transparent. It is now possible to see performance by channel.
Ads inside AI Overviews haven’t arrived in Brazil yet, according to the Google help page consulted in September 2026.
For B2B, the decision is not whether to use AI. It is to define what it optimizes and where it cannot decide alone.

What changed in Google Ads since 2024

Gemini became the foundation of the platform

In 2024, Gemini appeared as a conversation assistant inside Google Ads. In 2026, Google placed it at the center of the whole ad operation. At Google Marketing Live 2026, the company presented Ask Advisor, a single agent that connects Google Ads, Google Analytics, Merchant Center and Google Marketing Platform; new ad formats created with Gemini for AI search; and Asset Studio, which gained multimodal features to turn brand guidelines into creative pieces.

In these communications, Google doesn’t detail availability by country and language for each feature. Before planning a campaign around a novelty, confirm that it already appears in your account.

Another change from the same event: Display campaigns are being moved into Demand Gen. We explain the timeline and how to migrate in from Display to Demand Gen.

AI Max for Search: AI starts to decide the matching

Launched in 2025, AI Max for Search brings together three features: search term matching, which goes beyond the registered keywords; text customization, which generates headlines and descriptions from the landing page, the ads and the keywords; and final URL expansion, which sends the user to the page of the site that the AI considers most relevant. There are controls for brand, locations of interest and text guidelines.

According to Google itself, those who use the full set get on average 7% more conversions or conversion value at a similar CPA or ROAS. It is a number from the platform’s maker, and each account’s result depends on the quality of measurement and campaign structure.

There is also a deadline. Google is migrating Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) campaigns to AI Max. The automatic migration of DSA campaigns was postponed to February 2027, but automatically created assets and campaign-level broad match have automatic migration scheduled for September 2026. It is worth checking now, in your account, what has already been migrated.

Performance Max: more visibility into where the budget runs

Performance Max gained a channel performance report, with data from Search, YouTube, Discover, Gmail, the Display Network, search partners and Maps, which can be downloaded. For the advertiser, this reduces the "black box" of campaigns and allows talking with data about where the budget is being spent.

Ads in AI Overviews and AI Mode

According to the Google Ads help page consulted in September 2026, ads inside AI Overviews are available only in English, in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and India. Brazil and Portuguese are not on the list. Text and Shopping ads from existing Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns may appear in these spaces where the feature is active.

For a Brazilian company, the most immediate effect of AI in search is still on the organic result and on generated answers, the subject of our article on the shift from SEO to GEO.

What this changes for a B2B company

Google’s AI optimizes what you ask it to optimize. In B2B, where the cycle is long and few leads become customers, this requires care. These are the points that MindBrand considers essential before handing an account to these features:

Define a conversion that represents a customer, not just a form. If the conversion is "filled out the form", the AI looks for more forms, and not necessarily the right ones. Import the lead status from the CRM (qualified, opportunity, sale) into Google Ads so it learns from what generates revenue.
Watch the search terms. By broadening matching, AI Max can reach searches that are of no interest. Review the terms report frequently, keep negative keywords and use the brand controls.
Control where the traffic goes. With final URL expansion, the ad can take the visitor to a page you didn’t choose. Use the URL controls available in the account to exclude pages that shouldn’t receive ads and make sure every eligible page has a clear call to contact.
Review the generated texts. Use the text guidelines to keep the brand voice and don’t publish variations that promise what the company doesn’t deliver.
Measure cost per qualified lead. CPC and form CPA are mid-journey indicators. What matters in B2B is the cost per opportunity and per sale.
Keep the strategy under human control. AI optimizes within the structure you define: audience, offer, budget and landing page remain strategy decisions.

This is how we work in Advertising and Paid Media: automation working for the result, with cost per result as the reference number.

And SEO?

The search changes that affect organic, such as AI Overviews and AI-generated answers, are in the article Google changes: from SEO to GEO. The decision between investing in paid media or organic, and how much each costs, is in How much SEO costs and in How much paid traffic costs. The two fronts complement each other: media accelerates volume while organic grows.

Frequently asked questions

What is AI Max for Search?

It is a set of Google Ads features for search campaigns that combines AI-based search term matching, text customization and final URL expansion. It extends reach beyond the registered keywords, with controls for brand, location and text.

Do I need to migrate my Dynamic Search Ads campaigns?

Voluntary migration to AI Max is already available, and the automatic migration of DSA campaigns was postponed to February 2027. Automatically created assets and campaign-level broad match have automatic migration scheduled for September 2026. Check the status in your account.

Do ads in AI Overviews already work in Brazil?

According to the Google Ads help page consulted in September 2026, no. The list includes only English in countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and India, and Brazil does not appear.

Does Google’s AI replace the traffic manager?

It automates optimization tasks, but goals, offer, measurement and lead quality still depend on whoever manages the account. In B2B, defining what counts as a result is the decision that weighs the most.

Want to know whether your account is ready?

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