That's an interesting thought I hadn't considered. The AirPods do indeed seem like Apple accidentally invented (or at least popularized) a new product category

That's an interesting thought I hadn't considered. The AirPods do indeed seem like Apple accidentally invented (or at least popularized) a new product category while trying to reference the old headphones, which were pretty iconic in their advertising. All of the "copycats" are taking that same product category and designing around the formfactor. I agree that most of the copycats are more aesthetically pleasing, including the Pixel Buds.