AGI as a project is trying to make machines that can do what brains do. One great way to help that project is to study how the brains themselves work. Manymany key ideas in AI come from ideas in neuroscience or psychology, and there are plenty of labs out there studying the brain with AI in mind.
Why am I telling you this? You claim that you’d like to be an AI researcher, but later you imply that you’re new to computer programming. As mentioned in some of the comments, this is likely to present a large barrier to “pure” AI research in
an academic CS department, corporation, etc. A computational psychology or neuroscience lab is likely to be much more forgiving for a newbie programmer (though you’ll still have to learn). The major things that graduate programs in computational neuro look for are strong math skills, an interest in the mind/brain, and a bit of research experience. It sounds like you’ve got the first two covered, and the last can be gained by joining an academic lab as a research assistant on a temporary basis.
If you’re considering giving academia another shot, its worth thinking about neuro and psych (and indeed linguistics and cognitive science, or a different/better philosophy program) as well as computer science and pure AI.
Consider getting back into neuroscience!
AGI as a project is trying to make machines that can do what brains do. One great way to help that project is to study how the brains themselves work. Many many key ideas in AI come from ideas in neuroscience or psychology, and there are plenty of labs out there studying the brain with AI in mind.
Why am I telling you this? You claim that you’d like to be an AI researcher, but later you imply that you’re new to computer programming. As mentioned in some of the comments, this is likely to present a large barrier to “pure” AI research in an academic CS department, corporation, etc. A computational psychology or neuroscience lab is likely to be much more forgiving for a newbie programmer (though you’ll still have to learn). The major things that graduate programs in computational neuro look for are strong math skills, an interest in the mind/brain, and a bit of research experience. It sounds like you’ve got the first two covered, and the last can be gained by joining an academic lab as a research assistant on a temporary basis.
If you’re considering giving academia another shot, its worth thinking about neuro and psych (and indeed linguistics and cognitive science, or a different/better philosophy program) as well as computer science and pure AI.
Good luck!