The argument that data collection is protected free speech is a weak argument. First, just because it is collected and available for purchase should not mean the government can use it without a warrant. Second, massive data collection and integration was not even a concept when the Bill of Rights was written.
I am not saying the contract should go to a for-profit corporation (in California that would make it subject to taxes--an instant cost increase). I do think opening up competition would force a revisit to the cost structure, which is a healthy process.
That said, the Walmart house brand Onn has been a delightful surprise.
The other tools are so far behind. I describe Claude Code like a first year graduate student and the others (like Gemini) like a high school student looking for a date. Perplexity is probably the closest to Claude Code capability, but it is a distant second.
The primary function of the design engineer is to make things difficult for the fabricator and impossible for the serviceman.