As much as I'd like to be optimistic about this project, it feels like a scam to me.
WISP was a recent coin aiming to do the exact same - Raiblocks + Privacy and as of yesterday they did an exact scam. It's true the developers have not touched any of the donations as of today but there's hardly anything in them and that doesn't mean they won't
WISP - They too were looking for donations before releasing anything of substance to the community. They exit scammed 2 days before the release of their 'simple whitepaper'.
If this were truly a project in the spirit of XRB (now Nano) and Colin, he certainly did not go about it in this manner, yo can even check the old threads.
I want to be a believer in this project but I certainly won't be donating until I see more substance but when I do I will for sure buy into an ICO or whatever
Just my $0.02
I agree with a lot of what you say. There is always a possibility that every new project is a scam. However, imo (not that it's worth much) these guys come off as genuine. Given the potential, it would be nice if they were more transparent about who they are. If they really believe that they can build this coin with the privacy and technology they have referred to, then unless they are broke and can't afford to quit their jobs now, they should do so and it would help with more donations since they could be more up front. I don't know their situation, but am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. In the meantime, I will donate a small amount in the next few days assuming the project team remains engaged in this form. It would be nice to see them address some of the issues raised.