Specifically, why would GL.iNet develop a new "pro" version of their Slate 7 and use OpenWrt 21.02?
Slate 7 is positioned as a mid- to high-end device, and the "pro" version will be actual WiF-Fi 7 it seems, unlike the crippled non-Wi-Fi 7 Slate 7.
So I am a little curious why they would use an OpenWrt version that will be six years old by the time the new device is released.
The answer is vendor SDK.
Presumably MediaTek based, and MT unwilling to update the SDK to a newer release.
GL-BE3600 (Slate 7) is QCA - Adding OpenWrt Support for GL.iNet GL-BE3600 (WiFi 7 Router).
GL-MT3600BE (Beryl 7) is MediaTek - GL.iNet - Beryl 7 - GL-MT3600BE - #37 by wfgriffin88.
Why Qualcomm uses an old version of OpenWRT when they ship their SDK, is a question for Qualcomm.
Mmm. Good catch.
there are already some devices waiting for the qualcommbe target to appear/mature:
https://github.com/openwrt/openwrt/pulls?q=is%3Apr+is%3Aopen+qualcommbe++add++support