Why code? To make art and play games!

In this essay, I will argue that not all programming is about building telic software, and it is in this gap where we can define autotelic software, which is worthwhile to do, even in the age of LLMs. But what does that even mean? I think that when we think of software, we are mostly thinking about tools, which is to say software with telos, a purpose/goal. A spreadsheet, instant messenger, or music player are all tools to enable us to do certain things. This is telic software. These are all noble applications, but there isn’t much intrinsic value in working on these tools, which means there is space for LLM assistance potentially, especially if you build malleable software. In my mind, art and games are both instances of things where code can be a constitutive part of an autotelic activity. In other words, you are coding in order to make a piece of art or to play a game. In these particular instances, it is also inseparable from the creation or playing, so it becomes autotelic as…