Google AI Max: DSA transition and new reporting
Google has comprehensively revised its help documentation for AI Max for Search. Advertisers now receive more detailed guidance on performance evaluation, optimization best practices, and a fixed timeline for transitioning Dynamic Search Ads. The update does not introduce new product features, but it offers important signals about how Google envisions the future of AI-powered Search campaigns and how existing account structures may change in the months ahead.
The most significant change concerns automatic migration: campaigns using Dynamic Search Ads will gradually move to AI Max starting in February 2027. Google had already announced this transition, but now documents the process for the first time in official help content. For teams still relying on DSA, this creates a clear planning basis. They can adjust budgets, bidding strategies, and reporting workflows to the AI Max format in advance instead of reacting to a short-notice switch.
What is changing in reporting
A central focus of the update is expanded reporting views. Advertisers can analyze performance across several dimensions. These include search terms alone, search terms combined with landing pages from AI Max campaigns, and separate evaluations for Dynamic Search Ads—with and without landing page mapping. This granularity helps identify which queries actually drive conversions and which pages the AI automation favors.
Google also clarifies that search term reports show where users are directed after clicking an ad. That makes the link between query, ad, and landing page more transparent—a key point for teams that do not want to run AI Max as a black box. At the same time, the company highlights new options for excluding underperforming search terms or destination pages. Negative keywords and negative URLs are available without undermining the overall automation.
New views at a glance
- Search terms as a standalone performance dimension.
- Search terms plus landing pages from AI Max campaigns.
- Search terms from Dynamic Search Ads evaluated separately.
- Combined DSA views with landing page mapping.
Dedicated guidance for travel advertisers
Beyond general AI Max rules, Google introduces a new section specifically for Search Campaigns in travel. The documentation explains how reporting data from multiple campaign components is consolidated into a unified view. Travel marketers can evaluate search terms, inventory performance, and conversion outcomes together instead of switching between isolated reports.
Google also allows segmentation by ad format. Advertisers can compare performance across Travel Promotion Ads, Booking Links, and travel feed-based ads. For travel providers with complex product feeds, this is especially relevant because different formats often serve different user intents. A consolidated view reduces blind spots in budget allocation and makes data-driven decisions about format priorities easier.
A new optimization philosophy: intent over keyword rigidity
The update also marks a strategic shift in best practices. Google places greater emphasis on intent-based targeting and moves away from purely keyword-centric control. In AI Max campaigns, conversion logic should be the central steering signal, not tight alignment between individual search terms and predefined keyword lists. That fits the core idea of AI-powered campaigns: the system should recognize relevant queries even when phrasing diverges from the original keyword set.
Specifically, Google advises advertisers to prioritize conversion goals over keyword relevance. Search term and item group performance should be reviewed every one to two weeks—often enough to spot outliers, but not so aggressively that the AI has little room to learn. Negative keywords should be used sparingly. Over-filtering traffic that could benefit from intent-based matching contradicts the goal of using AI Max as an expanded matching mechanism.
| Recommendation | Goal | Practical relevance |
|---|---|---|
| Prioritize conversion goals | Align AI with business outcomes | Less micro-optimization on single keywords |
| Weekly to biweekly reviews | Spot weak queries early | Balance between control and learning phase |
| Use negative keywords sparingly | Avoid blocking intent matching | More reach on relevant queries |
| Apply negative URLs selectively | Exclude weak landing pages | More precise page-level control |
What the DSA migration means for account teams
The documented shift from Dynamic Search Ads to AI Max starting in February 2027 is more than a technical deadline. It signals that Google intends to phase out DSA as a standalone format and make AI Max the default for automated Search campaigns. Advertisers who used DSA as a flexible tool for large websites or dynamic inventory should evaluate early how bidding strategies, landing page logic, and exclusion rules behave in the AI Max context.
A practical three-step approach is recommended: first inventory existing DSA campaigns and establish performance benchmarks. Then run parallel AI Max tests to measure differences in query matching and conversion quality. Finally, adapt reporting workflows to the new views so no comparison gaps appear after automatic migration. Travel teams should also integrate the new format-based reports into their regular analysis.
The documentation update therefore delivers more than reporting guidance—it provides a roadmap for an AI Max-first future. Teams planning Search budgets strategically should treat the new rules as guardrails: more transparency on search terms and landing pages, stronger focus on user intent, and a clear timeline for the end of classic DSA setups. Adjusting processes, dashboards, and optimization routines now helps avoid friction when automatic migration takes effect in 2027.
