One of us! One of us!
Different desktop environments have different speeds for graphics.
Pop-os is currently making one in-progress so you might be essentally using an unreleased DE for developers to test and optimize?
You can install some other ones and switch to them from login-screen to test their speed. Tiling window managers blew my mind when I first saw them.
Check out unixporn they have lots of WM/DE setups over there. i3/sway for instant and efficient work or hyperland for lots of animations etc. KDE is practically windows but improved.
Tho might also be pop-os being made for new computers.
That feeling when you realize windows hasn’t booted fo half a year and has kinda just there for no reason with like 20 updates in queue.