Yeah I would think this file size will increase well over time. Maybe a part 2 of the article can go over how updates to the file are made when new content is published and possible scaling solutions.
Sadly in 2021 adding 140KB to a page isn't a big deal (given how heavy the rest of the page probably is) - but it really should be.
A large chunk of the world's population still pays a locally-expensive rate for mobile bandwidth, and we're increasingly leaving them behind - or worse, pushing them into zero-rating internet plans which mean they can only use Facebook and WhatsApp while avoiding the rest of the web: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-rating
It's only added if the user shows an intent to search. And if you want to search, 144kb is a decent price to pay for instant search once it's downloaded
update: 144KB for JSON file
a little bit worrying, given their scale and potential bandwidth requirements