Microsoft Advertising Rolls Out Its Own AI Max Globally

Microsoft Advertising made AI Max generally available across every advertiser account worldwide on August 19, and switched it on by default for new Search campaigns, following the same automated playbook Google rolled out for its own Search campaigns earlier this year. If you run Bing Ads alongside Google Ads, the two platforms are now converging on the same core idea: let AI expand what queries you match, rewrite creative in real time, and pick the landing page, rather than leaving all three to manual configuration.

What Microsoft's AI Max Actually Does

The feature set mirrors Google's version closely: search term matching expands beyond your literal keyword list using signals from your keywords, ads, landing pages, and inferred user intent, explicitly including complex conversational queries typed into Bing or asked through Copilot, not just traditional short-tail searches. Text customization rewrites ad copy in real time to better match the specific query, and final URL expansion lets the system pick whichever page on your site it judges most relevant for that query, rather than always sending traffic to the URL you originally set. Microsoft says built-in reporting, brand controls, and term exclusions remain available to keep some visibility and guardrails over what the automation actually does.

Why the Timing and Default Status Matter

Setting a feature as default for new campaigns, rather than opt-in, is a much stronger signal than a quiet beta release, it means Microsoft is confident enough in the mechanic to make it the standard experience for anyone starting fresh. For advertisers already running Google's AI Max, the learning curve here is smaller than it looks, the underlying tradeoffs, expanded matching in exchange for less granular control, brand safety concerns around AI-rewritten copy, are the same conversation you've likely already had on the Google side.

What to Check If You Run Microsoft Ads

• Confirm whether AI Max is already active on your existing Search campaigns. Since it's default for new campaigns, check your account settings directly rather than assuming your current setup is unaffected.
• Set brand controls and term exclusions before, not after, expanded matching goes live. The same category of risk that applies to Google's version applies here, expanded query matching can surface searches you didn't anticipate being associated with.
• Compare performance against your Google AI Max data if you run both. Running the same automated mechanic on two platforms gives you a natural side-by-side test of how each platform's version of expanded matching actually performs for your specific account.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Microsoft's AI Max the same thing as Google's AI Max?

Conceptually very similar, expanded query matching, AI-rewritten text, automated landing page selection, but they're separate systems on separate platforms with their own controls and reporting.

Do I need to opt in to use it?

No, it's on by default for new Search campaigns as of the general release, existing campaigns should be checked directly to confirm status.

Can I turn off specific parts of it, like text customization?

Microsoft's messaging points to brand controls and term exclusions as available guardrails, check your account's specific settings for granular control over each capability.

Two major ad platforms converging on the same automated matching-and-creative approach within the same year isn't a coincidence, it's where the industry is heading regardless of which platform you prefer, and the accounts adapting to it deliberately will outperform the ones treating it as a default to ignore. If you run Bing Ads and want your account reviewed for how AI Max is actually behaving, our paid media team can take a look.