Quite thought-provoking, and connecting it to a related field it seems the (relative) success of LLMs and the likes are indications that enough data can at least learn you something without always needing to interfere with the world first(?)

Let me restate that: Enough accurate data about the real world can let you learn something about the real world without having to yourself interface with the real world. So, for example, Kepler's Laws were based on Tycho Brahe's observations, not on Kepler's.