“why have a clutch at all?”
Even an electric has a motor......you really don’t want it running at high RPM all the time, so you need a clutch to shift the trans yes?......that’s my take anyway.
I admit I know nothing about transmissions but have read something about electric motors being able to deliver torque from zero MPH and up. I’m driving my late brother’s hybrid Prius and was told it doesn’t have a transmission (so if an oil/lube joint tries to upsell me a transmission fluid change, I’ll know to turn it down).