The chicken coop controller needs access to use whatever drivers (Bluetooth?) to connect. On the other hand, they could have used Wi-Fi instead. The financial app, however, definitely should be a website. However, apps are a way to increase the longevity of the login token because apps on a non-rooted phone supposedly cannot leak the login token and can be trusted to keep it safe on the device.

I have an app for programming my chicken coop

What kind of programming does a chicken coop need?

my company's payroll management software just rolled out an app called "swag"

that's not a joke

I agree mostly but 401k does last after you leave a company. It’s more like a bank account setup for your employer to put money in.

It’s just used for onboarding and not managing or following your investments.

I agree. It's way more sus to download an app. The reason social media sites push apps over websites is because they can harvest a lot more data that way.

Best apps are those that do basically everything in webview anyway (looking at you playstation)

Corollary: I hate websites that refuse to provide native apps for commonly used functionality.