They're phoning it in with this trash because there isn't competition. They want to make their own lives easier rather than the customer's.
This right here is the crux of the matter and why I have no sympathy for the defenses of Electron. I don't care at all how easy it is for the company's developers to make something. I care that the software I get is high quality, and I'm not willing to sacrifice that so that the company can cut corners on their costs.
(That is not an insult)
"require" means something different in the hardware context, and other concepts come into play.
Client software makes it possible to use services you pay for, operating systems make it possible to use applications.
It's difficult to come up with a more straightforward analogy - I don't even want to try cars, these are rapidly becoming a much bigger issue than firmware.
Same as with any other requirement: when you can afford it.
Slack's desktop client shouldn't require Electron (making it unusable on low-end devices), but it does. They can get away with that requirement, because there's hardly any alternative client worth your effort/attention.
I was sceptical about BitWarden (versus 1Password), because their UX was quite far behind - but they're slowly catching up, and I might have to reconsider my choice there.
If I wasn't "required" to run a dozen different proprietary/non-portable apps, I'd be using OpenBSD instead of macOS.
I do not "require" X to be free, but given all other things being equal, it's my preferred choice. Unfortunately, a lot of the time, we do not have the luxury of being picky.