Social Rocket
Google is building out Demand Gen with three new conversion components: one-click experiences for image ads on YouTube Shorts and Gmail, an AI-powered Business Agent alongside YouTube ads with a product feed, and affiliate location extensions with promoted pins in Google Maps.
The changes were announced on 24 September 2026 in the official Google Ads & Commerce Blog and, according to Google, will roll out starting this week. For performance marketers, the key point is that Google is tying discovery, advice and local store traffic more closely into the same campaign stack.
One-click ads on YouTube Shorts and Gmail
For image ads on YouTube Shorts, the click through to the landing page can now happen with a single tap. According to Google, the prerequisite for the new Shorts experience is full-screen 9:16 image ads.
The path from ad to landing page is also being shortened in Gmail.
Google cites its own internal analysis for this: advertisers who added Gmail to Demand Gen campaigns achieved on average 40 percent more conversions at the same ROI with their image creatives. According to the footnote, the figure is based on global internal Google data from February 2026 and should therefore be read as a provider benchmark, not an independent industry value.
For campaign teams, the practical question is less whether every account will achieve this exact uplift, and more whether additional Gmail and Shorts placements are worthwhile while conversion quality stays stable.
Business Agent answers questions directly alongside YouTube ads
Google is also testing a Business Agent for YouTube ads with product feeds. Viewers can ask questions about products or the brand during the video without leaving playback.
This moves part of product research directly into the ad interface. Instead of first switching to a landing page, users can clarify details first and then move on toward a purchase.
The Business Agent already appeared in Google's most recent commerce update. Our article on the new AI visibility and commerce features in Merchant Center explains how Google is increasingly linking product data, AI answers and merchant tools.
Promoted pins arrive in Google Maps via affiliate location extensions
The third component is aimed in particular at retail networks and car dealerships.
With affiliate location extensions, brands and retailers can use promoted pins in Google Maps. The pins can appear while users browse Maps, search for places or navigate.
This gives Demand Gen a much more local conversion path: a campaign can not only generate interest in a product but also guide users to a physical retailer location.
For retail media and omnichannel marketing, this is a relevant step. Retailer data, proximity and ad delivery continue to converge. Our overview of how Walmart Connect combines CTV, social and offsite inventory shows similar developments.
What changes for campaign planning
The three new features address different breaks in the funnel:
- Shorts and Gmail reduce one click on the way to the landing page.
- The Business Agent answers product questions before the site visit.
- Maps connects digital demand with local points of sale.
This makes Demand Gen broader than a purely awareness-focused channel. At the same time, clean measurement becomes more important: more placements and new interactions can deliver additional conversions, but they also make it harder to determine which touchpoint was actually decisive.
That advertising platforms are delegating more optimisation to AI systems is also shown in our overview of automated AI advertising and the growing AI share of ad spend.
For merchants with product feeds, it is also worth comparing other platforms. Snapchat, for example, has extended Dynamic Product Ads directly into Sponsored Snaps.
Availability and context
Google states that the Demand Gen updates will roll out from the week of 24 September 2026. Depending on account, market and campaign type, individual features may therefore appear at different times.
For German advertisers in particular, it is worth checking which Business Agent and Maps functions are actually enabled in your own account before building them firmly into campaign plans.