I don't think the point of this project is to be closer to economic viability, but to demonstrate an approach that would lead to faster economic viability due t

I don't think the point of this project is to be closer to economic viability, but to demonstrate an approach that would lead to faster economic viability due to allowing faster iteration and evaluation of small scale experimental designs. In HN terms they are demonstrating a significantly faster REPL by keeping the project small and minimising use of esoteric or highly bespoke components. It's the closest you can get to building your own stellarator by walking into radioshack. I think it's a pretty cool idea.