Of course AMP has other motives than simply making the web faster for mobile, but it also does make the web faster for mobile. I guarantee the AMP version of that paper's mobile website provided a significantly better user experience than the normal version. That is why AMP has been successful, and it's why I will continue to click on AMP links whenever available.
Is giving Google that much control ideal? Of course not, but from a user perspective it's a hell of a lot better than the alternative.
Is giving Google that much control ideal? Of course not, but from a user perspective it's a hell of a lot better than the alternative.