It may be unfair, but I'd be suspicious; it's easier to start a project than it is to complete one, and there's a lot of end-stage stuff that they may not have experience with.

I don't think it's the engineer's fault that the product never shipped, but with no end product we can't make a judgment either way. They could be a bunch of architecture astronauts for all we know. There's something to be said for picking a tech, sticking with it, and pushing it to its limits.