Read “The Gervais Principle” https://ribbonfarm.com/2009/10/07/the-gervais-principle-or-t...

I think it explains everything, most companies are optimizing for “confused” - a class within the framework of people who work hard for no reason.

Not saying it’s the best but it’s certainly a way to do it, and probably becomes inevitable once the company is big enough.

I also think it closely parallels the practice of companies being actively hostile to their customers (or Pareto optimal as they might see it). Big companies would rather provide an offering that suits them, actively mistreating their customers, and just target customers that will go along with it rather than wasting time on customers that want some less profitable version of the offering.