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Meta Overhauls How Ad Formats Are Selected. Manual Control Is Shrinking.

Filip Ivanković··1 min read

Meta is replacing manual ad format selection with a dynamic system where AI chooses whether your ad runs as a carousel, single image or video based on each impression.

What happened

Meta announced it is moving away from traditional format selection (single image, carousel, collection) and replacing it with a system where advertisers upload multiple assets and Meta's AI selects the format per placement and user.

Why it matters

Manual creative control is shrinking across Meta's ad platform, following the same trajectory as Google's AI Max where platforms take over format decisions because machine learning optimises faster than humans.

🇦🇺AU angle

Australian SMBs that rely on manual creative setups will need to shift their production workflow toward multi-format asset libraries rather than single-format campaign briefs.

Who cares

Paid social managers, creative teams and agencies producing Meta ad creative who currently build campaigns around specific format choices.

Risk

Advertisers who only upload single-format assets will starve the algorithm of options, resulting in worse delivery and higher costs compared to competitors feeding it multiple formats.

Your move

Start uploading multiple creative assets per ad (images, videos, copy variants across 1:1, 9:16 and 16:9 aspect ratios) to give Meta's system more to work with

Review performance by placement in Ads Manager to understand which formats Meta is favouring and test the new structure against your existing manual format ads

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Filip Ivanković
Filip IvankovićFounder, New Rebellion

10+ years leading performance marketing across agencies and in-house teams in Australia. Writes about the gap between marketing activity and commercial outcomes, and what it takes to close it.

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