Google AI Measurement Upgrades at Marketing Live

Google Ads has introduced new AI-driven measurement tools aimed at helping marketers of all sizes demonstrate performance, increase return on investment (ROI), and make better use of first-party data.

At its annual Google Marketing Live event for advertisers, Google revealed enhancements to its AI measurement capabilities, designed to make these tools more accessible to smaller brands.

These updates were previewed exclusively to Search Engine Journal ahead of the event, highlighting Google’s ongoing commitment to offering advertisers improved insights into performance, incrementality, and return on ad spend.

Incrementality Testing: Becoming More Accessible

Measuring marketing effectiveness has long been a challenge for many marketers. Despite investing considerable time and budget to drive results, it can be difficult to clearly identify which efforts are genuinely making an impact.

In the past, incrementality testing within Google Ads was mostly limited to accounts with large budgets, typically requiring a minimum spend of $100,000 to conduct such tests.

However, this has now changed. Google has lowered the spending threshold significantly, allowing incrementality tests to be run with just $5,000 in budget.

The reduced budget requirement now allows many mid-sized—and even smaller—advertisers to conduct controlled tests that accurately measure the real lift their ads generate, rather than just tracking conversions that may have happened regardless.

Alongside this lower threshold, Google is introducing a new Bayesian-based approach designed to improve the likelihood of obtaining clear, conclusive results. These tests can be run for as little as 7 days or extended up to 56 days, with 28 days currently recommended as the optimal duration.

This update means marketers no longer need to depend on directional data or last-click attribution models. Instead, they can precisely measure the impact of their Google Ads campaigns and make budget or creative decisions with greater confidence.

Cross-Channel Measurement Is Getting Smarter Inside Google Analytics

Google Analytics is also receiving a significant upgrade. Soon, marketers will have access to more detailed cross-channel performance data, including impressions, spanning Google properties and other platforms.

This improvement aims to help marketing teams better understand the entire customer journey and calculate return on investment more precisely. Although these features are not fully available yet, Google assures that deeper insights will be rolled out in the coming months.

This update will be especially valuable for brands using Performance Max or running upper-funnel campaigns across various channels. Since visibility into pre-click data has traditionally been limited, any increase in impression-level reporting across platforms represents a positive step forward.

Data Manager: A Central Tool For First-Party Data Activation

Google is also rolling out Data Manager, a centralised tool designed to help marketers collect, store, and activate their first-party data, all while maintaining existing privacy safeguards.

With privacy regulations tightening and cookies being phased out, many brands are urgently looking for better ways to utilise their own data. Data Manager serves as an all-in-one solution, using confidential computing to keep sensitive information secure and ensure it is only used for approved purposes.

Upcoming features include data strength recommendations, which will highlight weaknesses in your data strategy and suggest practical improvements.

To simplify integration, Google is introducing a new Data Manager API. This update merges several APIs into a single schema, making it easier for developers to connect audience and conversion data across Google Ads, GA4, and GMP.

While not every marketer will interact directly with this tool, it has significant implications for teams that depend on agency or partner integrations to manage campaigns. It reduces the technical effort needed to activate more first-party data signals across different platforms.

Why Marketers Should Pay Attention

A key highlight of this update is the audience it is designed for. Previously, many of Google’s advanced measurement tools were available only to advertisers with large budgets and dedicated internal data teams.

This situation often left small and medium-sized businesses struggling to demonstrate their campaign performance or grow their investment effectively. The introduction of these new AI-powered measurement tools signals a clear shift towards making high-level, enterprise-grade measurement accessible to a wider range of marketers.

For those under pressure to deliver measurable results without significantly increasing spend, this development is particularly encouraging. Additionally, Google appears to be moving more decisively towards cross-channel, privacy-compliant measurement, placing greater importance on first-party data.

Despite ongoing changes in the third-party cookie landscape — including recent reversals — these tools provide a strong foundation for marketers as privacy regulations continue to evolve globally.

Looking Ahead

Google Ads’ latest updates represent a significant move towards making AI-powered measurement more intelligent, quicker, and accessible to a broader audience.

With more affordable options for incrementality testing and a streamlined way to manage and activate first-party data, these new tools offer deeper insights without needing a large enterprise budget.

However, it’s important for marketers to remain cautious and engaged. Just because these tools use AI doesn’t mean you can simply set them and forget them. You’ll still need to check the data assumptions carefully and actively shape your measurement strategies.

It now seems that marketers with smaller budgets have more opportunities to participate and benefit from advanced measurement capabilities.

Which of these new tools are you most excited to try out in your campaigns?