I used to agree with what you're saying, but after reading this leaked Google memo I think maybe we're both wrong: https://www.semianalysis.com/p/google-we-have-no-moat-and-ne...
Experts who are both in a position to know, and seeking to maximize the commercial potential of their work are saying the cat is already out of the bag. They make a persuasive case that public, open-source models are closing the gap with private, commercial ones and admit bluntly, "We have no secret sauce."