I remember reading that AMEX Surpass cardholders aren’t eligible for Ascend bonus when the Ascend first came out, but I don’t remember specific datapoints about previous Surpass members who applied for an Ascend.
In my family member’s case, he had the Surpass and downgraded to the free card in January 2018, just before the Ascend was rolled out. So he’s never technically held the Ascend. Is he also excluded from getting the Ascend sign-up bonus?