

Google scans YouTube videos for information about what products appear in them
Yes, but not specifically looking for products. They’re scanning to try to learn everything about the video with the goal of better matching suggestions to the interests (as determined by watch history) of viewers.
The intention is (as always) to increase viewer session time because the more time viewers spend on the platform, the more ads they see and ultimately the more money YouTube makes.
Of course, that scanning and view history can also be used to target ads with the goal of increasing ad click-thru and conversion (ultimately also driving the profit goal)
That time was back on November 6.
Or January 20.