Was about to lament that there was no way to charge an iPad when it was plugged into an external monitor, until it occurred to me that I never actually tried plugging a charger into this USB-C splitter. And you know what? It worked! Found myself quite delighted with this development.
Those with eagle eyes would notice the draft post I had open, suggesting that it would be nice for iPadOS to disable the built-in screen when plugged into a monitor. It still would be nice, but not as necessary given that charging works.