Merchandise for Thor, Iron Man, and Captain America without the power of the Infinity Stones at hand.
Marvel is upping the ante in Phase 4, with many characters who are more powerful than Thanos. Scarlet Witch was able to panic the Mad Titan in Avengers: Endgame, and she's received a significant power-up ahead of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness; Kang could defeat Thanos by using time travel against him; and the multiversal forces Doctor Strange is wrestling with are beyond any power invoked thus far. But viewers may well be unwittingly underestimating the power of another Phase 4 villain, Gorr the God-Butcher, a tyrannical being who has dedicated his life to destroying all gods—and it would appear that his rampage has targetted New Asgard in Thor 4: Love & Thunder. Official (spoiler-filled) merchandise for Thor: Love & Thunder focuses in on Jane Foster's arc, but also drops a tantalizing hint about Gorr himself.
The official description for Eaglemoss' replica Thor helmet includes a brief of the forces Jane Foster's Mighty Thor must face, and includes a throwaway line explaining Gorr's power; "With divine powers himself, Gorr was driven to rid the universe of gods wherever he found them." Note that this doesn't actually suggest Gorr is a god himself; rather, it simply states that he wields the power of the gods. This is likely a reference to Gorr's weapon, All-Black the Necrosword. Sometimes called the "Slicer of Worlds" and the "Annihiblade," this was forged millennia ago to kill Celestials. As seen in Thor: God of Thunder #10, All-Black the Necrosword draws power from the blood of those it slays.
So far, all evidence suggests the MCU's portrayal of Gorr the God-Butcher will be remarkably comic-book-accurate. The recently-released Thor: Love & Thunder trailer contained shots that are perfect reproductions of pages from the comics, including one showing a god Gorr had killed. This accuracy means it's likely the Necrosword possesses similar attributes to the comics, in which case by the time Thor encounters Gorr he's likely to already be far more powerful than Thanos - given Gorr will have already slaughtered a lot of gods. Indeed, in the comics Gorr is able to perform feats Thanos would only be capable of while wielding the power of the Infinity Gauntlet, such as tearing huge chunks of a planet's moon out of the surface to hurl them at Thor. Love & Thunder director Taika Waititi has always loved the spectacular, so it's entirely possible Gorr's power will operate on the same kind of scale.
The comic book version of Gorr ultimately chose to construct a so-called "Godbomb," a weapon that would destroy all divine beings across time and space. Ironically, he was unaware he had actually become a god, because others had believed in his mission and put their faith in him. Curiously, there are several shots in the Jane Foster as the Mighty Thor in New Asgard; this perhaps hints the MCU's Gorr will lead an army against the gods, in which case he too could unwittingly find himself becoming a divine being because of their faith. That would certainly be an ironic twist for Thor: Love & Thunder to take.
