Because the cost and complexity of implementing technology has improved orders of magnitude.
Also, people starting startups are flush with cash from the longest bill run in modern history, so tend to spend.
Why do people feel the need to launch with a big “feel” when their companies are still small?
Market incentives and startup advice all explains this phenomenon. Look big, be big. Look small, stay small.
Why do they all look the same?
I’ll take a #3 with fries and a milkshake. Can I get extra salt on the fries?
Truth is, the technology industry has spend the last 10-15 years optimizing the heck out of its technology platforms for delivering small innovations, and not whole new product categories.
There was a time where every site had to be hand coded and custome built, but now companies are really focused on just the small part of the tech that’s different, which is often a small component of the overall infrastructure.
The lower value stuff ends up just being more and more off the shelf and less custom, and therefore less custom looking.
The rise of SaaS in particular really incentivized everything looking the same, because the “same” was the way to get people started with the least amount of ramping.
The whole “show instant value” means “use familiar interfaces” et al.
My 2c.