Although I believe the word ikigai—in the Japan of prior generations—is a nuanced concept encompassing life’s purpose and value, for better or worse, it has been transformed into a visual meme: a four-part, colorful Venn diagram.
It’s now a “world-word,” similar to other world-words—such as emojis and hashtags—which attempt to be shortcuts for subtle and sometimes complicated concepts.
Is this a good thing?
It’s hard to say. There can be a benefit to simplification of a concept such as ikigai, making it an easier tool for more people to use—especially for those of us in which Japanese is not our native language. However, there is also a cost to losing nuance. (I lean towards it being a net benefit, because I believe the rare people who seek nuance and deeper understanding will still be able to.)
Regardless, the Venn diagram representation of ikigai is here to stay. Purists beware.