Been commenting on and observing Apple for decades now, And they most definitely listen to their customers, which is why we've moved away from butterfly keyboards, gone back to more ports and buttons, discontinued the Touch Bar, and more.

One doesn't become a trillion dollar company by ignoring your customers.

And yes, Apple could have promoted Lightning as a standard... but it was a much, much better connector than the mini/micro USB connectors most phone used when it was introduced. Which in turn made it a selling point for Apple iPods, iPhones, and other devices.

Why give away one of your defining features?

You, of course, can believe what you wish regarding Lightning, but either way we've moved past it.