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Over the past year, much of what changed in paid advertising happened without anyone logging in. Google upgraded Search campaigns, changed how its bidding behaves and brought AI answers into Arabic search. Meta rebuilt how it decides who sees an ad. For Dubai businesses, results can shift even when nobody touches the account.
Here are ten changes worth understanding, what they mean in the UAE and what to check, whether your campaigns run in-house or through a PPC agency in Dubai.
- AI Max is now the default for Search
Google moved AI Max for Search out of beta in April 2026. From September, Search campaigns using automatically created assets or campaign-level broad match were automatically upgraded. Dynamic Search Ads follow from February 2027.
AI Max matches searches beyond your keywords, adapts ad text and can choose landing pages. Google’s internal data shows an average of 7% more conversions or conversion value at a similar CPA or ROAS when all features are on, compared with search term matching alone. Test that against your own results.
Check: which campaigns were upgraded, and which features are switched on.
- Smart Bidding now aims for the target you set
From 17 August 2026, budget-limited campaigns using Target CPA or Target ROAS deliver closer to the target entered.
Say your Target CPA is AED 200, but leads have been arriving at AED 120. Results will now move closer to AED 200, without any change to your budget. Some advertisers used an unrealistic target as an informal spending brake. That no longer works.
Check: compare every target with the last 30 days of actual results, then reset it deliberately.
- Lead quality depends on what you feed the algorithm
Automated bidding optimises toward whatever you count as a conversion. If that is any form fill, it will find more form fills, including the time-wasters real estate and education teams know well.
Importing CRM outcomes, such as qualified leads, viewings or enrolments, gives bidding a signal tied to revenue rather than activity.
Check: whether your conversion actions measure business outcomes or just form fills.
- AI answers now appear in Arabic search
Google brought AI Overviews to the Middle East and North Africa, with Arabic support, in May 2025. AI Mode is now available in Arabic too. People can get a summarised answer before they reach any ad.
In Seer Interactive’s 2026 study, about a third of informational queries showed an AI Overview, against roughly one in twenty transactional queries.
Check: split performance by query type and language, not just by campaign.
- Brand strength now affects paid results
The same Seer study tracked 53 brands. On informational queries in 2025, brands cited inside an AI Overview averaged a 15.74% paid click-through rate; brands not cited averaged 11.19%. Seer stresses this is a correlation, since stronger brands are also more likely to be cited.
Either way, the work of a branding agency in Dubai and a performance team can no longer run in isolation. Recognition, reviews and credible content all shape how paid ads perform.
- Ads inside AI Overviews haven’t reached the UAE
Google shows ads inside AI Overviews, in English, in 12 countries, including India and Singapore. The UAE isn’t one of them at the time of writing, so ads here appear above and below the AI summary instead. Where the format runs, sensitive categories including healthcare and finance are excluded.
Eligibility requires AI-powered targeting, such as broad match, AI Max or Performance Max.
- ChatGPT is now an ad channel in the UAE
On 31 August 2026, OpenAI opened self-serve Ads Manager across the Middle East and North Africa, and the UAE is listed as available. Results can be measured through OpenAI’s pixel and Conversions API.
Check: treat early spend as a test with its own conversion tracking.
- On Meta, creative does more of the targeting
Meta’s delivery system now leans heavily on the ad creative itself to find the right audience, and Advantage+ sales campaigns have replaced the older shopping version. Narrow interest targeting tends to matter less; genuinely different creative angles matter more.
The gains aren’t automatic. Confect’s study of 3,014 e-commerce advertisers using its catalogue-ad tool found measurable ROAS declines through the 2025 rollout.
Check: whether your ads carry different messages, or the same message in different colours.
- Automation has to respect Dubai’s ad rules
AI-generated ad variations don’t know local regulations. Dubai property ads need a Trakheesi permit from the Dubai Land Department, with the permit number shown in the ad. The Dubai Health Authority’s standards for medical advertising on social media rule out claims such as “the best”, “100%” and “immediate results”.
Check: use brand controls and text guidelines, and review automated copy. For clinics, a DHA content checklist is a practical place to start. Switch off text customisation where nobody can review it.
- Broader matching needs closer watching
Keywordless matching reaches searches you never chose. In a bilingual market, that can mean mismatched Arabic or English queries, competitor terms or irrelevant traffic.
A new search terms report view shows the queries, headlines and landing pages AI Max used together. Google suggests reviewing search terms every one to two weeks, alongside negative keywords and brand exclusions.
What to ask about your campaigns now
- Which campaigns moved to AI Max, and how did results change?
- Are Target CPA and ROAS set to what the business can afford?
- Do conversions reflect qualified leads or revenue, or only form fills?
- Who reviews AI-generated copy in regulated categories?
What advertisers still control are the inputs: realistic targets, clean conversion data, varied creative and a brand worth citing. A PPC agency in Dubai should report on what those inputs produce, such as qualified leads, cost per acquisition against target and revenue, not clicks. Wisoft Solutions, for example, builds reporting for the performance campaigns it manages around those outcomes.
FAQs
Which PPC changes matter most for Dubai businesses in 2026?
Five have the most direct effect: AI Max as the default for Google Search, Smart Bidding delivering closer to stated targets, AI answers in Arabic search, ChatGPT Ads opening to UAE advertisers, and Meta relying more on creative than audience settings.
Does AI mean PPC campaigns no longer need managing?
No. AI handles bidding, matching and much of the ad copy, but it optimises toward the targets and conversion data it is given. People still set those targets, connect CRM data, supply creative and check compliance.
Can I control or switch off AI Max?
The upgrade was automatic, but features such as search term matching and text customisation can be switched off. Google also offers one-click experiments to test AI Max against your current setup.
Do keywords still matter in AI-driven Search campaigns?
Yes. AI Max keeps your keywords. With AI Max or broad match on, they act more as a starting signal than a strict boundary, so negative keywords and search term reviews matter more.
Can UAE businesses advertise on ChatGPT?
Yes, through self-serve Ads Manager, provided the advertising and billing entity is UAE-based. Ads are shown to users on ChatGPT’s Free and Go plans.