I know that a lot of speed limiting Verizon has always done since it launched 3G several years ago in order to maintain better network stability. At the time, it really separated it from AT&T's know instability, especially once the iPhone launched, which AT&T leveraged that its 3G speeds were faster.
Present day, on the other hand, I am not sure why they lock down so much bandwidth. Yes, it could be for Verizon or some government agency to "spy" on what you are transmitting, but lets be honest: they could monitor what you are doing with at most a 10% decrease to your overall speed. I think this article either greatly overplays the amount carriers limit speeds, or is biasing the article to suggest monitoring. I did notice they mentioned no real alternative for why speeds could be limited.
So, in short, yes, wireless carriers do in fact limit your speed. You might even blame Verizon for starting it half a decade ago. Its what made their 3G network so stable. If every user is maxing out each connection, it increases the overall load on the network on an exponential level.
I cannot, however, speak to whether its as high as 50% (yes, LTE is "capable" of 100 Mbps, but thats theoretical, much like T-Mobile's 42 Mbps HSPA+) for whatever nefarious reason you can conjure, or if this article slants data. Notice they also say that magical phrase "up to" when they say the speed is limited? That is a classic advertising/propaganda tactic used probably since before we called it propaganda. T-Mobile's HSPA+ can get "up to" 42 Mbps downlink. How many T-Mobile customers in that coverage area with a capable device actually get even close to 42 Mbps? Color me cynical, but I despise anything that stinks of propaganda.
Let's see your Pixel 10 and 10 Pro photos!
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