[Art]

Yes, cleared/explained very nicely, thank you.

It has been said that the journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. The same thing applies to your "quest", your desire to do good things in the field of AI. Obviously your education is paramount toward you achieving your goal(s). And after school, the more you know, the more valuable you become to your employer(s). What you learn, your knowledge, no one can ever take away from you.

Knowing where you are now and where you wish to eventually be is that thousand mile journey I mentioned. While the basics of math, science, mechanics, physics, etc., are certainly necessary, ultimately, you will have to decide in which area of AI you wish to venture. There are many as you have named but a few like image processing, Speech/voice recognition, etc., but be open to any and everything that sparks your interest.

Lastly, Do Not Wait! It is not going to come to you. Many of those things you mentioned are already here and the research and science behind much of AI is growing at an exponential rate. Immerse yourself in all you can with regard to your chosen area of AI. Make your future happen!

Best of luck now and then!

[Don Patrick]

what will you do, if you can't get something you really want, for long years ? 

I would plan when I would get it, how I would get it, and what I'll do in the meantime.