I always ascribed push button shifting to the Chrysler torq-flites. Those were the first ones, I remember, but never researched this.
It's hard to get people to change habits, so if they were accustom to shifting levers then that's what they'll prefer.
Cutting edge only applies to the "early adopters" who are looking for such and willing to take the risk of purchase and likely higher cost. More common is "wait and see" people and there's the entrenched hard cores, that won't budge.
Some innovations are necessarily self inflicted shots to the foot. Similarly, the pedal start was such a "non-starter" so to speak.
Of course, the Govt had something to say...
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/automotive-histories/automotive-history-the-mysterious-disappearance-of-the-chrysler-pushbutton-automatic-a-government-conspiracy/
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