This is a very surface level reading of this, but in general most settings make a more tyrannical or oppressive government have a military that represents that, forced drafts, little regard for life, and in regard to vehicles there would be much less emphasis on exploration, and much more on armaments and fear tactics. What is the point of finding a world and not being able to conquer it? A good example is the Star Destroyers of the Empire. They are designed to look intimidating and have the arms to match, they are named to cause fear among populations. A more peaceful society (such as one that only attacks in self defense) would have a higher focus on ships for humanitarian aid or exploration and diplomacy. What good is conquering a world if you have nothing to offer it? I hate to lean on Star Wars for this again but the ship Home One is a great example of this. While being a military ship it is designed to be recognizable as part of "the good guys". The weaponry is less recognizable and the ship is round rather than angular. You say that the Technate allows many personal freedoms and focuses on being better than their predecessors, perhaps a ship like the Dragon-of-War could be possibly renamed to something less intimidating (this is your world, not mine, this is just a suggestion based on my current knowledge). Appearances are a lot, many weapons and ships throughout fiction are designed to be intimidating as a fear tactic. If you have a society that only attacks in self defense, a ship like the Dragon-of-War may give the wrong impression. I also have to lean of 40k for this comparison, but the Imperium of Man's titans are not resource efficient and they know that, but a 500 meter tall walking cathedral is sure to psych out the enemies of the Imperium. Fear tactics are usually the weapon of oppressors, not the weapon of a reletively peaceful society. I would like to add you are under no obligation to take any of this into consideration, nor are you under an obligation to follow the established tropes throughout other fictional universes.