Ask HN: Is anyone doing independent machine learning research?

Hello HN,

With the resources available online today, it seems possible to get into research without going into a research program like a PhD, especially if someone is targeting a more niche field or technique, where they may not need google's resources to train a massive model.

One of the hard problems with independent work/research however is that you need to set your own goals and get your own motivation.

Is anyone here doing independent research and if yes, how did you solve the motivation issue? Are you part of some open source project? I'd be especially interested to hear about people who might have published papers, while not working as researchers.