Project Ladder

Projects are the spine of the roadmap. Each one should be small enough to finish, but real enough to show what you learned.

#	Stage	Project	What it proves
0	Orientation	A learning log, environment checklist, use-case decision memo, and first roadmap plan.	Build the map before choosing tools.
1	Foundations	A tested Python data application with a CLI or API, setup notes, and a short data report.	Become fluent with code, data, math, and systems basics.
2	Machine Learning	An ML baseline report comparing simple and stronger models with metrics, error slices, and a model card.	Learn how models learn from data and how evaluation can lie.
3	Deep Learning	A PyTorch training project with loops, validation curves, checkpoints, ablations, and debugging notes.	Train, debug, and reason about neural networks.
4	LLMs	An LLM fundamentals notebook comparing models, tokenization, structured outputs, embeddings, costs, and failure cases.	Understand tokens, transformers, generation, adaptation, and evaluation.
5	AI Applications	An evaluated RAG or AI workflow application with documents, prompts, tests, logs, latency, cost, and failure analysis.	Build reliable AI products around models.
6	AI Agents	A tool-using agent with typed tools, memory, traces, task evals, prompt-injection tests, and an architecture README.	Build controlled tool-using systems, not vague autonomy.
7	Model Infrastructure	A deployed model-backed service with data or retrieval pipeline, registry metadata, eval checks, structured logs, and dashboards.	Operate AI systems as production software.
8	Optimization and Hardware	An inference benchmark and optimization report for an open-weight or hosted model workload.	Make inference faster, cheaper, and more predictable.
9	Security, Blockchain, ZKML	A threat model, red-team report, smart contract security lab, and tiny ZKML or verifiable computation demo.	Secure, govern, and verify AI-enabled systems.
10	Mastery	A capstone AI system with architecture, implementation, evaluation, deployment, observability, cost, security review, and portfolio narrative.	Own a complete AI system end to end.