Too Long; Didn't Read
AI and neural networks in particular were considered a backwater for researchers for decades. Top AI researchers are now making more money than pro athletes. The shortage of AI researchers will continue for some time, since people just weren’t studying this stuff. It took the ascension of a different industry to really allow it to take off: Video Games. Dan Obeidallah: 15 years ago, I proposed a revolutionary concept to build an AI card for video games but I chickened out because I didn't think I was old enough, smart enough, or tough enough.