We show up
It’s really common for pitches to managements within companies about Linux kernel upstreaming to focus on cost savings to vendors from getting their code into the kernel, especially in the embedded space. These benefits are definitely real, especially for vendors trying to address the general market or extend the lifetime of their devices, but they are only part of the story. The other big thing that happens as a result of engaging upstream is that this is a big part of how other upstream developers become aware of what sorts of hardware and use cases there are out there.
From this point of view it’s often the things that are most difficult to get upstream that are the most valuable to talk to upstream about, but of course it’s not quite that simple as a track record of engagement on the simpler drivers and the knowledge and relationships that are built up in that process make having discussions about harder issues a lot easier. There are engineering and cost benefits that come directly from having code upstream but it’s not just that, the more straightforward upstreaming is also an investment in making it easier to work with the community solve the more difficult problems.
Fundamentally Linux is made by and for the people and companies who show up and participate in the upstream community. The more ways people and companies do that the better Linux is likely to meet their needs.