AirPods weren't a new product category, they were an iteration of the Apple EarPods which looked the same, had the same remote features, etc.

I highly disagree about that, especially for the Pros with ANC and spatial audio. EarPods were nice wired earphones. AirPods seem like way more of a leap than just EarPods-but-wireless.

If those features defined new product categories, they wouldn't have replaced existing AirPods with "3rd generation" (non-pro) AirPods that have spatial audio and ANC in the upcoming 4th generation. They're iterative features on an existing product category.