@JeremyMallin I don't think that's entirely true. According to the international olive oil council, "black olives" are fully-ripe olives. It could be that the brining process artificially ripens them, but it doesn't appear to be the direct reason for the blackening.
@JeremyMallin Link for that source here: https://www.internationaloliveoil.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/COI-OT-NC1-2004-Eng.pdf