There already were airflow/pressure and throttle position sensors and idle control servo in the throttle body unless you mean carb antique.
Removing direct mechanical linkage decouples raw air flap control movement from driver intend (/1), allows things like dynamic throttle response, rev matching, better cruise control, better fuel efficiency by precise control over fuel/air mixture, lower emissions, and simplifies throttle body by removing a ton of mechanical junk.
/1 If you really think you need that in your life try flying older helicopters where You the pilot must act as an engine governor because thats how it worked in the 60s and thanks to insane aviation safety regulations everything got frozen in time with 1060s designs being still manufactured up to 2010.
Maybe the car you were taking about is in the metaverse though?
edit:
Perhaps far more importantly, the concept of features as a service has suddenly caught the eyes of vehicle manufacturers, see Toyota latest debacle with deactivated remote starters. The more digital control they have....
This is really a question of when. People are rightly assessing the sale/lease of software by the second in the very near future. Imagine driving down the highway on the first of the month and your pedal deactivates because you forgot to update an expired credit card autopayment.
Future's looking bright, can't wait to get my toilet on CANbus