TIL: USB-C analog audio didn't just start to disappear to sell you more DACs, it was "deprecated in October 2024, with the Type‑C Cable and Connector Specification version 2.3, to allow for the new Liquid Corrosion Mitigation Mode" (using the same SBU pins) which "aims to reduces the risk of corrosion within the Type-C port by driving voltages down as close as possible to 0V" (wikipedia)

Well shit, real world / physics / chemistry stuff strikes again and apparently has ruined enough ports to make this a thing