Meta’s AI Is Launching Itself — Here’s Why You Need to Keep an Eye on Your Ads

If you’ve opened Ads Manager lately and thought, “Wait, I didn’t switch that on…” — you’re not imagining it.

Meta has quietly started enabling new AI-powered ad features by default, without asking for your explicit approval. The goal, according to them, is to “increase automation and efficiency.” But in reality, it means your campaigns can start using tools you never turned on, with settings you didn’t choose.

And when you’re spending real money every day on ads, that’s a problem.

1. What’s Actually Happening

Over the past few months, Meta’s rolled out a wave of AI-driven features that sound helpful in theory — but in practice, they’re often switched ON automatically in Ads Manager.

Here’s some examples of what I have seen activated behind the scenes:

• Advantage+ Creative Enhancements: Automatically adjusts your images, colours, and text — sometimes even changing the background or cropping product shots.

• AI-generated background and text suggestions: Meta’s new “creative help” tools can write or redesign your ad visuals on the fly.

• Ad variation testing: Some campaigns are automatically split-tested with AI-generated copy or layouts, even if you didn’t create them yourself.

• Personalisation using chat data: Meta’s systems can analyse user chat interactions to improve ad targeting — whether you opted in or not.

These tools are meant to make advertising easier. But when they’re turned on without your input, it’s easy for things to go sideways.

2. The Problem With Auto-Enabled AI

Automation is brilliant when you control it. The issue is that many of these new features are buried deep in settings — or worse, the toggles keep moving.

Recently, I’ve seen Advantage+ campaigns:

• Launch ads with the wrong product.

• Use discount messaging that didn’t exist.

• Swap out creative mid-campaign without notifying me or my client.

For agencies and business owners who value brand consistency (and basic accuracy), that’s a nightmare.

When AI starts inventing offers or pulling the wrong creative, it’s not “optimising” — it’s off-brand automation, and it can damage trust faster than a bad review.

3. Why Meta’s Doing It

From Meta’s point of view, it’s about data and scale. By switching AI tools on by default, they:

• Collect more behavioural data faster.

• Improve their machine learning accuracy.

• Make advertising feel “plug and play” for small business owners who don’t want to manage complex campaigns.

But that convenience comes at a cost — control. And if you don’t know what’s been turned on, you can’t manage the risks or the results.

4. How to Protect Your Brand (and Budget)

Here’s how to keep AI in check:

🔍 Check Your Campaign Settings Weekly

Meta’s constantly updating Ads Manager. Every few weeks, new AI tools appear — sometimes hidden under “Advantage+” or “Performance Enhancements.” Open every section of your campaigns and ad sets and see what’s been toggled on.

🧠 Turn Off Automatic Enhancements

If you see settings like “Automatically improve your ad performance” or “Allow Meta to enhance creative,” turn them off unless you’ve tested them.

💬 Review Your Copy and Visuals Often

Even if you haven’t changed anything, AI tools can quietly adjust visuals and text. Check your live ads weekly to ensure they’re still aligned with your brand and offer.

📊 Track Performance Spikes

If your CTR or CPA suddenly changes, don’t assume it’s a good sign — it might be an AI experiment gone wrong. Dig into the “Inspect” tab to see what Meta’s been testing.

🚫 Monitor New Rollouts

Follow Meta’s Business Help Centre and changelog updates (buried, but important). They occasionally list new features or changes that went live.

5. AI Isn’t the Enemy — It Just Needs Supervision

Look, AI isn’t evil. It’s incredibly powerful when used intentionally — it can speed up testing, personalise creative, and find new audiences you wouldn’t have considered.

But right now, Meta’s version of “helpful automation” is more like a toddler with a paintbrush — enthusiastic, unpredictable, and capable of making a very expensive mess if you’re not watching.

So treat your ad account like an ongoing experiment. Use AI for support, but keep a human on the wheel.

6. Final Thought

Meta’s automation will only get more aggressive from here. It’s not about whether AI will run your ads — it’s about how much control you’re willing to give it.

Check your settings regularly. Audit your campaigns often. And if something suddenly performs “too well” or looks off-brand, don’t ignore it — inspect it.

Because in 2025, marketing with AI isn’t about trust — it’s about supervision.

Want someone to keep an eye on Meta’s updates so you don’t have to?
Let’s make sure your ads are performing because of AI, not in spite of it.