Why not found a start-up company and hire 2 - 4 full time developers and 1 project manager? Moreover, I believe MSC could attract many capitals too.
I think the right choice is the one that makes JR to commit 100% of his time to the project. You can bet that competition will commit full resources of their founders to their project.
Half-measures are not good for such a project. If the "buy back" is needed for JR to go "all-in" in MSC, then I strongly vote for the buy back.