The answer is yes, they did, but only on the Display Network. From now on, responsive ads are available (in beta) on the search network as well.

When you start using Google Adwords, you have several ad format options at your disposal. The format should be chosen based on the audience, budget, goals and objectives of the business that is advertising on Google. Among these formats are the so-called responsive ads. These ads undergo layout changes to better fit the website where they appear, but also according to the device used by the user. That is, the same ad can be displayed in different sizes and formats, depending on the website and screen of the device.

Google’s big news is that responsive ads have also started to be tested on Google’s search network.

Google notes that responsive Search ads are still in beta, and will learn and improve over time. At this time, this ad format is not yet available for all Google Adwords advertisers and can only be used for the following languages: English, French, German, and Spanish.

The new ad format is part of Google's investment in machine learning, with the hope that, in the future, ad optimization work will be automated. On the other hand, it is yet another attempt to stop advertisers from manual A / B testing.

To use Google Responsive Search Ads, simply set up an ad with three or more titles and two or more descriptions. Then, Google robots will dynamically test the combinations to show the combination that most likely will reach the goal determined by the advertiser.

To increase the likelihood of your ad showing, Google advises you to provide at least five different titles and two different descriptions that do not repeat phrases. Using redundant content will restrict the ability of the system to mount combinations.

If you want a title or description to always appear in your ad, you can "pin” them in the ad. This is one of the new features of responsive search ads. Responsive ads on the search network will also display custom URLs you've defined based on the ad's landing page. The new format will also allow you to collect statistical data on the performance of different combinations of titles and descriptions so that you have a greater and deeper knowledge about what works and what does not.

While in beta, new ads can only be added to ad groups with existing ads. However, if this format is not yet available for you, you can write quality titles and descriptions and be the first to test the functionality of Google Adwords when it is finally available to all advertisers.