would order this immediately if it had a function row

why do most / all of these artisanal keyboards lack numeric keypad?

Because the numeric keypads are largely unused and not ergonomic (wrist travel distance from letters to mouse). They are the "tenkeyless" variety, which many prefer. You can find full 104-key mechanical keyboards if you want as well, or get an external numeric keypad.

> not ergonomic

They are ergonomic for anyone who needs to type more than a few numbers in a row, or has used a pocket calculator more than a few times.

You can configure a layer to act as one, without adding more hardware and making the keyboard larger and less ergonomic.

Cynical answer: These things are expensive enough without adding another two dozen switches, and besides, Kids These Days grew up using laptops and don't get the point of having numpads when the numbers are all already there above the letters.

FWIW I grew up on the desktop and also don't get the point of having numpads when the numbers are all already there above the letters

It's infinitely faster to enter numbers using a numpad, and some people do that a lot.

that really depends on the count of numbers you're entering. how often do you type in a long list of numbers?

I can enter numbers faster on the number keys than I can on the numpad for most tasks. I've never really needed a numpad in 30 years

A huge percentage of people use computers for data entry. Many of them are accountants. Some even predate computers — but not calculators. Having the calculator form factor is critical for folks doing math all day.

I spent 7 years in Wall Street doing math all day and never used the numpad. Not all of us care about it...

FWIW, I grew up using T9 on features phones. I don't get the point of having QWERTY keyboards on smartphones.

Good for you, but I never claimed nobody preferred T9 phones over QWERTY, unlike the OP who said "kids these days" prefer TKL, which is just inaccurate.

Nuphy has one!