r/artificial - Artificial Intelligence and simulation technology

Firstly I just want to say I'm a teenager who's interested in Artificial Intelligence so my knowledge is limited/ slightly inaccurate. Sorry if this already exists/has been discussed. Do you see the possibility of deploying artificial intelligence in a simulated world in order to observe how they learn/grow/respond to events around them. Would this be a good way to teach them about the world before deploying them in the real world.