in general i'm baffled by most UX changes google pushes to their products. it just makes no sense to me, even if we're being generous with a profits-first perspective
you like that super convenient 1-click "remove" button on your youtube "watch later" list? let's make that a 2-click action by putting it under a dot menu with no other options in there
I think it's change for the sake of change. The same reason why grocery stores redo their layout every couple of years. They want to make things appear 'new' while also keeping you on your toes in the hopes that you'll buy more product.
They've been doing this for years now with Android. The biggest changes are always with icons and menu layouts now that they ran out of innovative ideas.
Grocery stores are actually a bit more sinister than that, they reorganize things periodically so people have to spend more time walking around the store and can impulse buy more. They are getting wiser though, they tend to do it more sectionally rather than the whole store so people don't get as fed up.
Oh God, I swear our local supermarket moves the fresh fish every three weeks. It’s always the fish and it just fills me with rage. I don’t want to do a meter by meter search for a chunk of salmon while my picky children are whining and chewing on my kneecaps.