I've never claimed I envisioned doing it solo. That's where most of the disappointment actually came from: teaching assistants and professors were so uninterested in the subjects they were giving, they'd hardly motivate anyone, let alone give them a chance to participate in anything world-changing. Even to the point that out-of-the-box creativity was punished. That drove the student body to turn into an exam-passing automata.

Universities are a perfect place for that, and I hoped for such a stimulating environment. I did end up meeting a teacher or two in later years that met my expectations, but they never stuck around long enough.

And no, the fame is not the driver, imho: I believe all humans would gladly contribute to a challenging problem solution, without requiring ego satisfaction (that can come later :)).