$50k is also a rounding error in the budgets of national space agencies and private sector players in the space industry, many of whom might be interested in a magical and revolutionary propulsion technology that could - if possible to extend to larger satellites - dramatically increase the design life of existing satellites and reduce the risk of failing to attain the desired orbit.
The piles of money at NASA, DOE, etc. are already allocated to things. They employ a lot of people on strategic projects. There is extreme competition for the small fraction that is available for new bids at any one time.
