> Conflict-free means that there is no conflict in the semantics,
If you start with an incorrect premise you will wind up in a strange place. Conflict free has a specific meaning, and "semantics" can have multiple layers. If your threshold is perfect conflict free semantics at all levels, then you are indeed doomed. But a CRDT can provide a distributed, conflict-free canonical source substrate, with a specific semantic meaning at a minimally useful lowest semantic level. The challenge is to find transformations that are "good enough" to minimize conflicts at the higher semantic levels that you care about.
If you start with an incorrect premise you will wind up in a strange place. Conflict free has a specific meaning, and "semantics" can have multiple layers. If your threshold is perfect conflict free semantics at all levels, then you are indeed doomed. But a CRDT can provide a distributed, conflict-free canonical source substrate, with a specific semantic meaning at a minimally useful lowest semantic level. The challenge is to find transformations that are "good enough" to minimize conflicts at the higher semantic levels that you care about.