Week of Sep 21, 2026
21 changes logged the week of Sep 21, 2026; 1 took effect. Open this week in the change history.
Google Ads
- Google Ads opened a six-month US Search pilot allowing some gun accessory ads
Google Ads will allow ads for a narrow set of firearm accessories to run on Search in the United States from October 2026, as a limited pilot lasting six months. The pilot covers bipods, sights, slings, mounts and braces; firearms, ammunition and regulated or permit-requiring parts stay prohibited. Source
- Google documented two ways to test AI Max against Dynamic Search Ads in experiments
Google published guidance for running a Google Ads experiment that pits AI Max against Dynamic Search Ads, using either a custom experiment or an experiment template. It matters because DSA is being retired in favour of AI Max, and this is the sanctioned way to measure the swap before it is forced. Source
- Unified AI Max reporting announced to show search terms, creatives and landing pages in one report
Google announced a new AI Max report in Google Ads that puts the whole Search ads journey in one place: the search term that triggered the ad, the creative assets the user saw, and the landing page they reached. Announced at DMEXCO; Google said availability details come later in 2026. Source
- AI Brief closed beta expanded to Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese and Spanish
AI Brief, the plain-language way to give AI Max business context, messaging guidelines and audience guidance, added seven languages to its closed beta. It launched in US English in May 2026, so this is the first time non-English advertisers can steer AI Max in their own language. Source
- Demand Gen image ads on YouTube Shorts and Gmail got one-click landing page visits
September's Demand Gen Drop added one-click experiences so a single tap on an image ad in YouTube Shorts or Gmail takes someone to the landing page. Google said advertisers get the most from it by uploading 9:16 full-bleed image ads for Shorts, and reported a 40% average increase in Gmail conversions at the same ROI. Source
- Investment strategy recommendations gained Holistic and Growth budget allocation modes
The Recommended investment strategy tab on the Recommendations page picked up two strategic budget allocation modes. Holistic moves spend out of underused or less efficient campaigns and into top performers; Growth only adds budget to top performers and never cuts anything. Source
- Affiliate location assets gained promoted pins in Google Maps for retail networks and dealerships
The September Demand Gen Drop said brands sold through retail networks and dealerships can show promoted pins in Google Maps using affiliate location assets, so they can pick up local demand while people browse and navigate. Source
- Bug made Local Services Ads show Business Profile numbers instead of call asset tracking numbers
Local Services Ads were displaying the phone number from the advertiser's Google Business Profile rather than the call tracking number configured in call assets. Google confirmed the behaviour on X, and the advertiser who reported it later said it appeared fixed. Source
- Customer Match began accepting unhashed IP addresses and interaction timestamps, not in the EEA, UK or CH
Google's Customer Match upload documentation now accepts two new columns: user IP address and user interaction timestamp, both sent unhashed. Advertisers can upload lists built on IP addresses alone, with no email or phone number, but IP matching is not supported for users in the EEA, UK or Switzerland. Source
- Performance Max began accepting up to 15 fixed-size Display image ads, such as 300×250, in some accounts
Advertisers spotted a new 'Image ads' section in Performance Max asset groups that accepts up to 15 finished image ads in standard Display sizes such as 200×200, 250×250, 300×250, 336×280 and 580×400, alongside the usual 1.91:1, 1:1 and 4:5 image assets. Google's Performance Max documentation still lists only the ratio-based assets and Google has not announced the change. Source
- Legal requirements policy added self-regulatory advertising codes for six more countries
Google updated the list of advertising and marketing self-regulatory codes referenced by its Legal requirements policy, adding codes for Argentina, Australia, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and South Africa. The underlying obligation is unchanged: advertisers must comply with local law everywhere their ads target. Source
- Google tested larger Local Services Ads with a bigger image and a highlight box
Google was spotted testing a redesigned Local Services Ads unit that takes up noticeably more space, with a larger image and a larger highlight box beneath the main ad listing. Source
- Budget recommendations began warning that lowering a budget would cut forecast conversion value
Google Ads started tying budget recommendations to a forecast. When an advertiser moves to reduce a daily budget, the interface projects the weekly conversion value they would lose and flags the campaign as limited by budget. Source
- Google Ads blocked editing Target ROAS while promotion mode was active
Advertisers found that Google Ads will not let them edit Target ROAS while promotion mode is active on the account. The interface says "You can't edit your Target ROAS while promotion mode is active" and offers ROAS tolerance as the only lever instead. Source
Google Analytics
- Google Analytics added hostname allowlist filters to approve which domains can send event data
Google Analytics gained Include filters for hostnames, letting you define a list of approved domains that are allowed to send event data to a property. Until now hostname filtering was exclude-only, which meant chasing each new source of spam by hand. Source
Google Ads API & Scripts
- Google Ads API v25.2 released with asset group URL options, hotel segments and new recommendations
Google shipped Google Ads API v25.2, a minor version. It adds asset group level URL configuration, automated video crawl settings for Performance Max, percentile metrics in the benchmarks service, hotel itinerary report segments, and new Target CPA and Target ROAS bid recommendations for Search. Source
Microsoft Ads
- Microsoft Advertising opened max CPC to portfolio bid strategies as the campaign-level cap was removed
Microsoft's bid strategy help page dropped the list that limited max CPC to a few strategies and now allows a maximum CPC on portfolio bid strategies. It lands days before October 1, 2026, when max CPC goes away for new non-portfolio conversion, value and clicks campaigns. Source
- Microsoft Advertising company list and job seniority targeting left beta and entered Audience planner
Microsoft removed the beta notices from LinkedIn profile targeting by company list and job seniority, making both generally available, and Audience planner now forecasts on those two dimensions. Limits stayed at 10,000 companies per list and 1,000 companies per ad group. Source
- Microsoft set January 12, 2027 to remove MaxCpc from the API for new and unused campaigns
Microsoft's BiddingScheme documentation says that from January 12, 2027 the MaxCpc field disappears from the API for new campaigns and for existing campaigns that are not already using it. Dormant usage will not be grandfathered, so scripts, bulk uploads and third-party bid tools need auditing before then. Source
ChatGPT Ads
- ChatGPT Ads rolled out in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Taiwan
OpenAI began rolling out ChatGPT Ads across seven more Asian markets, taking availability past 60 countries. Unlike the managed-only India launch in August, businesses in all seven markets get self-serve buying through Ads Manager straight away. Source
Search Console
- Multimodal search type filter launched in the Search Console performance report
Search Console's performance report gained a search type filter that separates multimodal searches from text-based web searches. Google confirmed this is new data that was not previously counted, so sites with image-driven traffic should see totals move. Source
Took effect this week
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