Lots of execs and managers believe that groups of people are more innovative and productive when they discuss things in-person. You may think they are wrong. You may not like that they believe this. But they really do believe that in-person is better for getting stuff done, and that's why they want it.
I'm guessing most people on HN are employees, not employers. It's therefore not surprising that the "concensus" seems to revolve around "employee think". When I've responded in the past, with an employer point of view, I get down-voted. That's OK. You may not like what i have to say. Of course companies are different. There are many reasons for office work. Many of them bad. You may work for a company with many layer…
Do what works for you best as an employer. As an employer, it is not easy to have remote teams especially if you are not designed to work remotely. Junior folks need more in person collaboration as well in my experience. So it really depends and there is no one size fits all answer. Most proponents of remote work take an extreme position and that is a problem.