What is AI Max in Search campaigns and how does it differ from Performance Max in Google Ads?
To understand AI Max in Search campaigns , one must begin not with features, but with focus. This is Google’s deliberate narrowing of scope—a return to the essence of search. Unlike Performance Max , which stretches across YouTube, Display, Gmail, and beyond, AI Max lives entirely within the boundaries of the Search network. That difference isn’t incidental. It’s foundational. Where Performance Max chases breadth, AI Max pursues depth. There is no need for keyword lists here. No spreadsheets of phrase match and modifiers. AI Max in Search campaigns relies instead on intent—drawn from your landing pages, your ad copy, and your structure. The signals we used to manage manually are now understood by the system, at scale. This is automation, yes—but not abstraction. Advertisers still guide the process. They retain the ability to refine URLs, exclude brands, and toggle keyword matching. AI Max doesn’t remove control. It redistributes it. Quietly. Intelligently. The difference...