Performance Max (PMax) is a Google Ads campaign where Google decides what to show and where: in search, on YouTube, on partner sites. It now has a feature that searches for videos about your business and adds them to your ads by itself. We mentioned the change briefly in the weekly news (This week’s news, 27 October). Here is our position and the instructions: we turn the feature off, and below we explain why.
The facts were checked against Google’s help page on sourced videos in Performance Max campaigns as of 2 November 2026; the feature was also covered by PPC Land (25 October) and Search Engine Roundtable (23 October). Where Google does not say something, we say so plainly.
What the feature does
The help page calls it “Sourced videos”. According to Google, its AI automatically crawls approved sources, finds videos in them and adds them to the campaign. There are three sources: social media, the page your ad leads to, and a linked YouTube channel. No more than 10 such videos are added to an asset group (the set of texts, images and videos for one ad). Google writes that it refreshes them periodically, and if you delete a video where it was hosted, it disappears from Google Ads too.
For the videos to serve, they are placed on a YouTube channel owned by Google. It shows your company’s logo and name, and the viewer goes to your page. So this is not your own channel, but a separate one created for the ads.
Who it affects
According to the help page, the feature is on by default in all new campaigns, and in some existing ones it may have been switched on automatically after a recent platform update. Google gives no date for that update. The condition: the campaign’s daily budget is above 5 US dollars. The help page adds one more detail: the feature is rolling out in stages and may not yet be available to you.
So “this did not affect me” should not be taken on trust. In our experience, checking takes a few minutes per campaign.
Why we are against it
Google’s argument is clear: no need to pick, format and upload videos by hand, and good videos from your channel will work for your ads. For a business that really has fresh, approved videos, this can be convenient. That is a fair point and we do not deny it.
Our position is different. An ad is what you saw before it ran. Here a machine picks the video, and you learn about the choice afterwards. Among the videos on social media and on your page there may be last year’s promotion with a different price, a random story filmed for followers, or a person who no longer works at the company. All of it stays public, and in a user’s feed it looks like your ad. Google says these videos can be combined with the ones you upload, but it does not say how it tells current from outdated.
So our rule: your ads should contain only videos you have approved.
What we did
We reviewed client accounts (read-only). In total: of 39 enabled Performance Max campaigns, the feature was set in 9. We turned it off in all nine. For the other 30, the API does not return this setting, so we cannot confirm “on” or “off” for them as a separate number. We did not touch paused campaigns.
Google’s help page does not say what happens to videos already added once you switch this off. So after unticking the box, open the assets section and check what is left.
How to turn it off yourself
The path from Google’s help page (item names as in the English help):
- Google Ads → your Performance Max campaign → settings icon (the gear next to the campaign).
- Section “Asset group” → “Asset optimization”.
- Untick “Sourced videos”.
- Click “Apply” and save your changes.
Important: the setting is at campaign level, so do it for each Performance Max campaign separately. To see what has already been added, open “Campaigns” → “Assets” on the campaign page: sourced videos appear in the list like other assets.
What to check afterwards
- Open “Assets” and look at the videos. Are there old promotions, other people’s faces, videos made “for our own”?
- If there are videos and none of your own, do not leave it like that. Upload your approved videos: Google says uploaded videos can be used in the same campaign, and then you decide what is shown.
- Check every new Performance Max campaign: in new ones the feature is on by default, so you have to untick it again after creation.
Summary
Performance Max adds up to 10 videos from your social media, site and YouTube channel on its own; in new campaigns this is on by default, and in some existing ones it may have switched on itself. We believe a person should approve the ads, so we turn the feature off. It takes a minute, and videos already added deserve a separate check. For other settings Google switches on without your “yes”, read what Google Ads turns on by itself, and for how we run such campaigns see the Performance Max section.
Sources: Google help, PPC Land, 25 October 2026.
Want a free audit of your Google Ads account? Send us a request — we will look at your account, your Performance Max campaigns and which videos Google added in your name.