Money is an innocent.
I really like this quote and the examples. Money is just an object without bias or preferences; heck it is just a piece of paper. We are the ones who give value and importance to it.
There was a prompt I've read before that was really inspiring. "If you had financial freedom, where you don't have to worry about money at all, what would you do with your life?" Without going into the complexities of it [money just enough to pay for all your needs, but not enough to take over the world], it is nice to think of how we'll spend more time with the family, our hobbies, charity, and all other nice things. I think this is the minimum of what we can strive to do.
Are content people the ones that invent clean energy, or cure cancer?
I think it's those that have been affected by these greatly who will try to fix these problems. Someone who's loved ones died from cancer when they were a child will try to become a doctor or researcher who tries to cure cancer. A rich person who suffered similarly can donate to cancer research. As we've seen right now, the rich don't care about clean energy or curing cancer. They want what's making the most money. They will continue to push fossil fuels and keeping healthcare costs high because it gives a lot of money. It's not about who's content or not that will solve these problems. But I do think that people who don't have to worry about money will have a higher chance of focusing on fixing problems.
And some part of these things can be started prior to having enough money. A few minutes today spent in a good conversation, doing a hobby, helping the neighbor. It all improves our experience. It might not be ideal, but it might also be enough to inspire us to keep working for a bit more.
They can also see it as a means to an end. I was reading about a billionaire in the US who died recently with 2m value. He spent his life supporting causes he believed in - Hospitals and universities etc.
But in general, this:
The incentive is to make money, not make money by improving life.