There are similarities, but web has the massive advantage that you can deploy a fix anytime, for your whole user base. With mobile, you need to tread much more carefully.
There are tactics to try and get it to look more similar (such as using RN, or making heavy use of feature flags), but ultimately app store review makes it a different beast.
This is why we built Screenplay (https://screenplay.dev/): to make mobile reversible and try to get releases to look more like web.
That being said, I think "more gated and complicated process" are the key here. Guess it's easy for web/backend developers to hold to the key and deploy as they see needed.
But for mobile, there are typically only a small set of gatekeeper at the entire company had the key to publish a new release to AppStore/PlayStore. Thus the more process is required.
I'm wondering whether there is a specific reason to mobile apps?
Would be nice if all releases (web, mobile, etc) can be going through the same pipeline. After all, those "people-centric" tasks are generally applicable to other projects as well.