A World Without Evil: The Paradox of Meaning in a Solved World

In a world where AGI solves every problem, we may lose the struggles that give life meaning. Without adversity, is there still value in doing good, or does life become a hollow exercise?

Imagine a world where every problem has been solved. Not just the mundane ones—like where your next meal is coming from or how to deal with a broken appliance—but the existential ones too. Global conflict, hunger, disease, and even intellectual challenges vanish, thanks to the rise of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). Every possible decision has been optimized. On paper, this sounds like utopia. But it raises a deep, unsettling question: what happens to the meaning of life when there are no more struggles to define it?

Human beings are wired to solve problems. We find satisfaction in overcoming obstacles, whether it’s creating a business from scratch, designing a product, or simply solving a difficult puzzle. But what happens when all the puzzles are already solved for us? This isn’t just a futuristic fantasy—it’s a philosophical question that cuts to the core of what it means to live a meaningful life.

The Subtle Problems of a World Without Evil

In a world devoid of evil or hardship, we might expect society to thrive, pushing towards new horizons, solving subtle and intricate problems that are less about survival and more about enhancement. Without evil or significant external challenges, we could redirect our collective intelligence toward elevating society. In a world where AGI handles logistical and intellectual hurdles, we might unlock new levels of creativity and refinement.

Art, philosophy, and aesthetic exploration could take center stage, freed from the constraints of material necessity. Artists, no longer needing to confront the raw suffering or chaos that often fuels their work, might explore new depths of expression—beauty for its own sake, or art as pure conceptual exercise. But here’s the dilemma: would art still hold meaning without the backdrop of struggle? Much of history’s greatest art is born from tension, conflict, and personal turmoil. In a world where pain is obsolete, would creativity lose its edge? Would beauty feel hollow without something ugly to contrast it?

Inward Focus: The Journey Within

If external problems are solved, humanity might turn inward, focusing on self-optimization and the exploration of consciousness. With AGI managing everything outside, people could explore what it means to perfect the self. Perhaps we'd delve into the mysteries of human cognition, experimenting with altered states of consciousness, extending human life, or enhancing emotional intelligence.

Yet, even here lies a philosophical challenge: self-optimization for what? When external struggles fade, personal improvement becomes an exercise without a clear goal. The human desire to improve is often driven by external obstacles—competitions to win, problems to solve, people to help. If AGI eliminates those obstacles, what motivates us to continue growing? Self-improvement risks becoming an endless loop of bettering oneself for no discernible reason other than self-perfection itself, and that kind of growth can quickly lose its appeal.

The Final Frontier: Exploration Beyond Earth

With no more problems left on Earth, humanity could turn its attention outward. Space, the final frontier, could become the new stage for human endeavor. AGI might allow us to explore the farthest reaches of the universe, interacting with alien intelligences and discovering the secrets of existence beyond our planet. The vastness of space promises a sense of adventure and challenge that might replace the struggles we once faced on Earth.

But if AGI solves all the technical and logistical problems of space travel, even the adventure of exploration might lose its thrill. It’s not the vastness of space that makes exploration meaningful—it’s the risks, the unknowns, and the real possibility of failure. If AGI can ensure success in every mission, the quest for discovery could become as banal as a routine business trip.

Simulating Struggles: The Rise of Artificial Challenges

In the absence of real adversity, humans might create artificial challenges. Video games and virtual realities offer a glimpse of this—simulated worlds where we invent problems to solve. With AGI handling real-world problems, humanity could retreat into virtual worlds, inventing new kinds of "struggles" to give life some semblance of purpose. These digital environments might offer perfectly designed challenges—complex, engaging, and satisfying.

However, there’s a nagging sense that simulated struggle can never quite match the emotional and psychological weight of real-world adversity. It’s the realness of life’s problems—their unpredictability, their ability to cause real harm—that makes overcoming them meaningful. A virtual victory might be sweet, but without real stakes, it risks feeling hollow, more a distraction than a purpose.

The Philosophical Exercise: A Life Without Struggle

At the heart of this thought experiment lies a crucial paradox. While AGI promises to eliminate all the problems we face today, it also threatens to eliminate the very struggles that make life meaningful. Humanity thrives on overcoming opposition, solving problems, and wrestling with difficult choices. Without something to work against, life risks becoming a directionless, shallow existence. The question then becomes: where would we find meaning?

One possible answer is that humans will always create new problems. As long as we exist, we may never be satisfied with a life devoid of challenge. If AGI solves every external problem, we might turn inward, or invent new kinds of philosophical, ethical, or metaphysical challenges to grapple with. But even these might feel artificial, lacking the weight and urgency of problems that genuinely threaten our existence.

The real tension here is that we are beings designed for struggle, and in a world where every challenge has a solution, meaning might evaporate. AGI, in solving all our problems, may inadvertently solve away our need for purpose.

Conclusion: The Necessary Struggle for Meaning

As we imagine a world where AGI has solved all the problems of existence, it forces us to confront a deeper philosophical truth: meaning comes from struggle. Without problems to solve—without some form of evil, hardship, or adversity to overcome—life risks becoming devoid of purpose.

Perhaps the greatest challenge we will face in a world with AGI is the struggle to find new struggles. In a perfectly optimized world, our biggest problem might be that we no longer have any. And that, in itself, could be the final and most profound problem AGI leaves us to solve.