Repository of problems worth solving
World Solve is a public institutional repository for identifying real unresolved problems across science, society, health, governance, economics, and local systems. Each entry is intended to be citable, inspectable, and actionable.
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4194Total
4194Open
0Solved
9Humans
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Self-driving systems have improved dramatically in ideal conditions, but heavy rain, snow, or unusual road situations still challenge their sensors and decision-making. Achieving true all-condition reliability remains an unresolved engineering problem.
technology-computing
global-unspecified
road
conditions
yet
build
fully
autonomous
vehicles
perform
safely
all
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
systems
haven
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Machine translation has become remarkably fluent, but it still frequently misses emotional nuance, sarcasm, or culturally specific meaning that changes a sentence's true intent. Bridging this final layer of understanding remains unresolved.
philosophy-ethics
global-unspecified
machine
translation
emotional
build
fully
preserves
tone
subtlety
very
different
whether
mathematics-logic
haven
resolved
possible
know
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
App permission systems exist, but many apps still collect more data than users realize or intend to allow, often through complex, hard-to-navigate settings. True granular control over personal data remains inconsistently implemented across platforms.
technology-computing
global-unspecified
data
users
control
personal
apps
collect
don
have
widely
trusted
philosophy-ethics
whether
resolved
systems
determine
society-governance
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Specialized AI hardware is improving, but there's still a significant tradeoff between processing power and energy efficiency that hasn't been fully solved. Breaking this tradeoff could dramatically reduce AI's growing environmental footprint.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
yet
build
energy-efficient
chips
match
performance
current
power-hungry
processors
tradeoff
whether
mathematics-logic
haven
philosophy-ethics
technology-computing
energy
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Small businesses are frequent targets for cyberattacks but often lack the budget or expertise to implement strong security measures. Closing this protection gap remains an unresolved challenge for a huge share of the global economy.
technology-computing
global-unspecified
cybersecurity
small
businesses
haven
solved
make
affordable
accessible
dedicated
staff
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
way
climate-environment
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Search engines have improved at understanding context, but still frequently misinterpret nuanced or ambiguous queries, returning results that miss what the user actually wanted. True intent understanding remains an unresolved challenge in information retrieval.
technology-computing
global-unspecified
search
user
intent
build
algorithms
fully
understand
actual
rather
just
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
haven
determine
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Many blockchain networks still struggle with slow transaction speeds and high fees during periods of heavy use, limiting their practicality for small, everyday purchases. Scaling solutions exist but haven't fully solved this tradeoff yet.
economics-resources
global-unspecified
blockchain
haven
solved
everyday
make
transactions
fast
cheap
enough
small-scale
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
way
technology-computing
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Digital voting could make elections faster and more accessible, but security concerns and lack of public trust have kept most large-scale elections reliant on paper-based or hybrid systems. A truly trusted digital alternative remains unbuilt.
society-governance
global-unspecified
digital
elections
voting
trusted
yet
build
fully
reliable
tamper-proof
system
technology-computing
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
systems
haven
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Cybersecurity threats evolve quickly, but training programs for both professionals and everyday users often lag years behind the tactics attackers are actually using. Closing this education gap remains an ongoing structural challenge.
technology-computing
global-unspecified
cybersecurity
training
haven
solved
make
keep
pace
constantly
evolving
attack
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
way
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
AI health tools can sometimes provide advice that sounds plausible but is subtly wrong or dangerous, and there's no consistent, scalable system for catching these errors before they reach real patients. This gap grows more urgent as AI health tools become more widely used.
health-biology
global-unspecified
scalable
advice
patients
don
have
way
verify
accuracy
ai-generated
medical
whether
philosophy-ethics
determine
resolved
agreed
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
AI coding assistants can speed up development significantly, but they sometimes generate code with subtle security flaws that even experienced developers can miss. Ensuring AI-assisted coding is as secure as it is fast remains an unresolved challenge.
society-governance
global-unspecified
code
security
haven
found
way
prevent
ai-generated
silently
introducing
vulnerabilities
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
technology-computing
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Updating software running power grids or medical devices carries real risk of unexpected downtime, but delaying updates leaves known security gaps open longer. Balancing update speed with operational safety remains an unresolved tradeoff.
technology-computing
global-unspecified
software
updates
haven
found
way
make
critical
infrastructure
both
fast
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
resolved
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Early brain-computer interfaces show promise for helping paralyzed patients control devices with thought alone, but long-term safety, reliability, and signal accuracy remain unresolved. Wider medical adoption depends on solving these fundamental issues first.
health-biology
global-unspecified
brain-computer
interfaces
medical
haven
solved
make
safe
reliable
enough
widespread
philosophy-ethics
whether
mathematics-logic
way
technology-computing
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Fast charging speeds up daily convenience but tends to accelerate battery wear, forcing a tradeoff between speed and battery lifespan. Solving this without expensive materials remains an unresolved engineering challenge.
economics-resources
global-unspecified
fast
build
batteries
charge
filling
gas
tank
degrading
quickly
battery
whether
philosophy-ethics
mathematics-logic
haven
technology-computing
climate-environment
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Robots can now handle many industrial tasks well, but tasks requiring soft, adaptable touch, like handling fabric or fragile objects, remain surprisingly difficult. Closing this dexterity gap would open robotics to far more everyday uses.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
tasks
robots
dexterity
like
yet
build
fine
motor
needed
delicate
technology-computing
affordable
philosophy-ethics
whether
capable
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
Genomic and biomarker-driven therapies will transform oncology and rare disease care, but high costs and limited capacity risk concentrating benefits in wealthy populations. Fair pricing, global data-sharing, and low-cost diagnostics will be critical.
health-biology
global-unspecified
will
limited
precision
medicine
create
new
inequalities
access
remains
genomic
society-governance
economics-resources
whether
institutions
philosophy-ethics
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
AI tools will increasingly support diagnosis and triage, but biases and opaque models may harm patients. Transparent validation frameworks, audit trails, and clinician–AI training curricula will be key.
society-governance
global-unspecified
will
human
collaboration
clinical
decision-making
need
rigorous
oversight
tools
increasingly
climate-environment
health-biology
systems
climate
technology-computing
without
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
AI tools will increasingly support diagnosis and triage, but biases and opaque models may harm patients. Transparent validation frameworks, audit trails, and clinician–AI training curricula will be key.
climate-environment
global-unspecified
will
human
collaboration
clinical
decision-making
need
rigorous
oversight
variant
focuses
society-governance
infrastructure
data
technology-computing
health-biology
climate
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
mRNA and vector-based technologies can shorten response times, but manufacturing capacity and regulatory agility must be built in advance. Global manufacturing networks and adaptive trial designs will matter.
health-biology
global-unspecified
must
next-generation
vaccine
platforms
ready
respond
weeks
new
threats
manufacturing
technology-computing
economics-resources
will
pathogens
market
rapid
open
Global / Unspecified, Global
mRNA and vector-based technologies can shorten response times, but manufacturing capacity and regulatory agility must be built in advance. Global manufacturing networks and adaptive trial designs will matter.
health-biology
global-unspecified
must
next-generation
vaccine
platforms
ready
respond
weeks
new
threats
variant
infrastructure
will
climate-environment
data
technology-computing
society-governance