It can be done, but it is a very expensive way to make gold. Transmuting elements has been being done deliberately since the early 1940's.
The medical industry depends heavily on synthetic radio isotopes.
The semiconductor industry used 'transmutation doped' or NTD - 'neutron transmutation doped' silicon, it's the only way to get even phosphorus distribution, as higher concentrations of phosphorus tend to segregate out in a melt.
How are these perpetual motion machines?
Zero point energy, would be an infinite source of power as the quantum fluctuations (the generation of 'virtual' particle and antiparticle pairs) are a fundamental part of the universe.
Commercial energy harvesters generate useful amounts of energy from stray radio waves, environmental vibrations, changes in temperature or pressure. In principle, a vibration energy harvester could extract energy until the whole universe is near absolute zero. Not quite infinite, but close enough!
I get your point and maybe this is just me but I was thinking of practical methods of transmuting lead to gold, which do not exist. But your point is taken
Regarding energy harvesters and potential zero point energy are not technically perpetual motion machines unless the change in entropy is zero