[NavinF]

Umm why not use `cwebp -lossless`? That's the official solution and it even guarantees preservation of transparent pixels with `-exact`: https://developers.google.com/speed/webp/docs/cwebp

> today, not sure in the past

Dunno about ffmpeg, but the official library supported lossless encoding a decade ago

> Why do I see WebP as an image format used to sneakily degrade PNG files?

Why does Twitter reencode PNG to JPEG even when this results in larger file sizes and terrible quality for 2D art and technical drawings? All the services you've listed are free and they all cater to the lowest common denominator. They'll never use lossless WebP by default for the same reason they won't use PNG. Lossless media is virtually unheard-of outside our bubbles. If you're lucky there will be a "download original" button