Other people in other fields are held accountable for deadlines because their work does not completely change and is not severely under-specified. If it is, then they are also just guessing.
I've had either luck or misfortune to "flip a switch" from two decades of being a techie/architect, to being a mid-manager, on basically a specific date as opposed to over the years, due to project's needs; and it's like that B&W picture of two faces and one vase in middle. Both perspectives are true, even if opposing and contradictory.
Good business lead will understand software engineer's perspective - even if it's not their primary view of the world, they can squint and catch a glimpse as needed. Likewise for good software leads.
Obstinate unwillingness to see or ascribe merit to other perspectives puts a ceiling on everybody's progress.
Of course it's a guess. The question is how to make more accurate guesses.
I think the question should be about how to maximize the net return on time dedicated to development, which may mean spending less time on (and investing less reliance on) estimates rather than expending unbounded effort improving the quality of estimates.