401K’s were never meant for retirement. They were initially meant to provide tax perks for executive level employees for their profit sharing bonuses.

They were never meant to replace pensions or be used as a retirement vehicle.

Financial advisors and banks pushed them on regular employees because they fell out of favor with executives in favor or better options.

401Ks are not a good option for regular people. General investment in ETFs or a diversified dividend portfolio and t bonds is much better.