Google Ads Editor picked up full AI Max support for Shopping. ChatGPT Ads added conversion bidding and bulk campaign tools. Performance Max was spotted testing household income exclusions. Google quietly dropped a long-standing spend threshold on Lead Form assets. None of these, on their own, would justify a client conversation.
Taken together, they show that the major platforms are expanding automation whilst adding new manual controls in the same breath. The two trends are usually framed as opposites: either you hand campaigns to the algorithm or you keep a hand on the wheel. These updates suggest the platforms themselves have stopped treating it as a choice.
What actually changed
Google Ads Editor 2.13 now supports offline editing for AI Max for Shopping campaigns, including automated text generation, URL expansion controls, brand lists and URL exclusions, alongside new Performance Max customer retention goals. The release also formally retires Video Action campaign creation, continuing Google’s shift for those campaign types towards Demand Gen.
ChatGPT Ads introduced conversion-optimised (oCPC) campaigns, automatic budget pacing, geographic exclusions and mobile measurement integrations with AppsFlyer and Adjust. A bulk API now supports campaign, ad group and ad management at scale. This is OpenAI building the infrastructure that Google and Meta advertisers have relied on for years.
Performance Max was seen offering household income exclusion settings in a live European account, letting advertisers remove specific income brackets (from the top 10% down to the lower 50%) from targeting. Google hasn’t confirmed a broader rollout, so this is worth treating just as an early signal.
Separately, Google’s documentation for Lead Form assets removed the $50,000 lifetime spend requirement, which prevented some accounts from accessing the full lead generation experience, expanded eligible countries by more than two dozen and added Zapier as a lead delivery option. The practical effect, if it holds, is that Google-hosted lead generation becomes accessible to a wider range of advertisers than before.
Why this belongs on your agenda
Automation is spreading into workflows, not just campaigns
AI Max reaching Ads Editor matters because Editor is where agencies and in-house teams do bulk, offline campaign management. Automation is no longer confined to the web interface where it is easy to review one campaign at a time. It is moving into the tools used to manage dozens of accounts at once, which changes how often a human actually reviews what the AI has decided.
ChatGPT Ads is becoming a channel that needs a real strategy
Conversion bidding, geo exclusions and proper attribution integrations move ChatGPT Ads from an experimental add-on to a channel that behaves like Search or Meta. Brands currently testing it on a small budget with minimal oversight will find that approach ages quickly. The channel is catching up to the level of governance the others already require.
Granular control is appearing inside automated systems
Household income exclusions and the loosened Lead Form eligibility both point to platforms adding levers inside automated campaign types rather than offering a manual alternative to them. Performance Max stays a black box in most respects, but the edges are getting more configurable. Advertisers who assume PMax is fully hands-off will increasingly leave relevant controls unused.
What to do about it
- Audit which AI Max and PMax settings are actually being reviewed, not just enabled. As these campaign types absorb more automation and more configuration options simultaneously, “set and forget” becomes a more expensive habit than it used to be.
- Treat ChatGPT Ads as a channel with its own governance requirements, not a satellite budget. If conversion bidding and proper attribution are now available, evaluate the channel against the same standards as Search and Paid Social.
- Watch the Performance Max household income signal without acting on it yet. It is unconfirmed at platform level. Worth flagging to relevant client teams as one to monitor, particularly in luxury, financial services and automotive accounts where income is a strong purchase signal.
- Revisit Lead Form eligibility if it was previously ruled out on spend grounds. If the $50,000 threshold genuinely no longer applies, some accounts may now have access to a format they were excluded from months ago.
None of these updates are dramatic individually. Their value is in what they say about the direction paid media is moving: broader automation, paired with more granular settings that only pay off if someone is actively managing them.
If you’d like a read on how these updates apply to your specific account structure, that’s the conversation to have with us.
Sources
- Google Ads Editor 2.13 brings AI Max support to Shopping campaigns
- ChatGPT Ads adds conversion bidding, geo exclusions and bulk campaign tools
- Household income exclusions spotted in Performance Max campaigns
- Google drops $50K ad spend requirement for Lead Form assets
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