Huh, that's interesting! I had a 2019 MBP with only 16gb of RAM - an amount I've been comfortable with on other computers prior to that - and it was UNUSABLE. Just MISERABLY slow. Upgraded to Apple Silicon with the same amount of RAM and it feels unstoppable, just always running at 150% of expected speed.

(I would have gotten more RAM in the 2019 laptop, but it was during that brief window where new laptop shipping times were measured in months, and I was happy to have ANY work laptop and not have to be using my old personal one, an old Air.)