Tor is effectively blocked in China. I use SSH tunnel to bypass the firewall, it seems like the best option available to do that: it's fast and easy to setup (at least on my linux pc). Also, it doesn't require 15k$ to go :-D
I don't think $15,000 is enough to get this properly code-reviewed. We already have Tor and know what its weaknesses are, and this doesn't seem to address any of those.
Additionally, I think software like Tor is fundamenally flawed when used to give people in "oppressed" countries access to the real Internet. Since all traffic out of the country is easily controlled, and Tor (etc.) traffic is easily recognizable, this can just be blocked too. Tor only works when you want to protect yourself from ISP-level actors in countries with legal protections for common carriers; it can't protect you from nation states.
A really innovative project would be a mobile mesh network that provides point-to-point and publish/subscribe messaging. Then actions like BART's shutdown of the mobile network could be easily circumvented. Accessing Twitter doesn't matter (except to Twitter's investors); what people want is the ability to communicate with the world at large. The first step is allowing uncensorable communication between people physically located nearby. Then you just need someone with a Pringles can to connect that up to the Internet :)
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