Buy a used Mac Mini. They haven't been updated in like 5.5 years at this point. You can just remote into it.

Or just build a hackintosh.

Neither is a good option for an established company — in that situation your app is likely too large/complex to compile quickly on a mini and the legal grayness associated with hackintoshing makes that a no go.

At work I just use an external KB while I’m working at my desk (98% of the time), rendering the macbook’s internal KB almost entirely moot.

I agree. The Mac Mini is enticing as a build server because of its price and form factor, but goddamn does it feel slow. I suppose a Mac Pro would be a better choice but they are so much more expensive.

If anyone working even remotely for the european union, or any agency willing to take on Apple for bad practice: THIS is the real legal thing you should complain about.

Locking people out of your software store if they don't buy your hardware for their development is an absolute scandal.