Turn off automatically created assets in Google Ads

Google Ads can write extra headlines and descriptions for your ads from your website, and for Performance Max Google says it refreshes them at least every 48 hours. Google also said that starting in September 2026, Search campaigns using this feature would be upgraded to AI Max automatically, so check your settings even if you never turned anything on.

What automatically created assets are

Assets are the pieces of an ad: headlines, descriptions, links, images and videos. Normally you write them. Google Ads can also make them for you, using AI and the pages on your site. Google keeps renaming them, so here is what to look for:

• Text customization. Google writes extra headlines and descriptions. In Search campaigns this used to be called “automatically created assets.” It now sits inside AI Max, a set of AI features for Search.
• Final URL expansion. Google can send people to a different page on your site than the one you picked.
• Images and videos in Performance Max. Google says that if you don’t add a video, Performance Max may make one from your other assets. It can also make extra versions of the videos you upload.
• Account-level automated assets. Google can add extras under your ads, such as sitelinks (links to other pages), callouts (short selling points), structured snippets, images and promotions.

Why it can cost you

The main risk is that Google shows words you never wrote or approved. Google builds these assets mostly from your landing pages. So:

• An old price, a past sale or a service you dropped can end up in an ad if it is still on your site.
• A line from a blog post can become a headline.
• A promise like “same-day service” can appear when you only offer it in some areas.

A wrong claim brings in clicks from people you can’t serve, and you pay for each one. This matters most if your website is out of date or you work in a field with strict rules about claims, like health, finance or legal services.

To be fair, Google says customized text only shows when it predicts it will do better than what you wrote. The point is to know it’s happening and check it.

How to check what Google made

1. Go to Campaigns, then Assets.
2. Pick a campaign from the drop-down at the top, or leave it on all campaigns.
3. Look at the Added by column. Google says assets it customized are marked Google AI.
4. To check one ad, go to Campaigns, then Ads, and select View asset details under a responsive search ad.
5. Remove any single asset you don’t like.

(If you can’t find it, search for “assets” in the Google Ads search bar.)

How to turn it off

Search campaigns: text customization

1. Go to Campaigns and open the Settings tab.
2. Tick the campaigns you want to change.
3. Select AI Max.
4. In the Asset optimization panel, clear the Text customization box.
5. Select Save.

Google says assets made this way stop serving once you turn it off, and Final URL expansion turns off with it.

Some older campaigns may still show a setting called Automatically created assets. In the campaign settings, select Edit, then Change automatically created assets settings, and choose Off: Use only assets I provide directly for my ads. Google says once you turn this old setting off, you can only use the feature again by opting in through AI Max.

(If you can’t find it, search for “text customization” in the Google Ads search bar.)

If your campaign was moved to AI Max

If Google upgraded a campaign to AI Max, you can turn AI Max off for that campaign. That turns off all of its features at once, not just text customization. Read what the AI Max auto-upgrade changed before you decide.

Performance Max campaigns

1. Open the campaign’s Settings.
2. Look for the asset optimization options.
3. Clear Text customization if you don’t want Google writing text.
4. Turn off video enhancements if you don’t want Google editing your videos. Google offers one control that switches off all video enhancements together.
5. Select Save.

To stop Google making a video from scratch, upload at least one video of your own.

(If you can’t find it, search for “asset optimization” in the Google Ads search bar.)

Account-level automated assets

1. Go to Campaigns, then Assets, and open the Associations tab.
2. Use the three-dot menu and select Account level automated assets.
3. Use the three-dot menu again and select Advanced settings.
4. Pick the types you want to turn off, such as dynamic sitelinks or dynamic callouts.
5. Choose a reason and select Save.

(If you can’t find it, search for “account level automated assets” in the Google Ads search bar.)

When it’s fine to leave on

You don’t have to turn everything off. Keeping these features can make sense if:

• Your website is current and every claim on it is true.
• You don’t work in a field with strict advertising rules.
• You look at the Added by column every week or two.

There is also a middle path: keep the features on, clean up your website first, and review what Google adds. If you ever see a claim you wouldn’t say to a customer, turn that feature off.

Check it automatically

The free SpendCanary scan looks at each campaign that spent money and lists the Google-made assets it is allowed to create, such as headlines, descriptions, edited videos or images taken from your website. It flags this without a dollar figure, because there is no reliable way to price a wrong claim.